TOKYO, Nov. 25 (UPI) -- Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi plans to visit the Middle East in January to encourage the peacemaking process, an official said.
Aiming at stability in the Middle East, the source of 80 percent of Japan's oil supplies, Koizumi wants to meet Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, and strengthen ties with those countries, the Kyodo News reported Friday.
The Japanese government planned earlier this year to invite Sharon and Abbas to Japan separately for meetings with Koizumi.
Abbas came to Japan in May, but Sharon has yet to do so, mainly because of political problems in Israel. This has prompted Koizumi to seek a visit to Israel, the news agency reported.
It would be the first visit of a Japanese leader to the Middle East since September 1995, when former Prime Minister Tomiichi Murayama visited the region.
