TOKYO'President Bush, using his swing through Asia to deliver fresh warnings that he is prepared to carry the war on terrorism beyond Afghanistan, told the Japanese parliament today that the two nations must work together to defuse threats to peace throughout the Pacific.
Bush told Japan's Diet that the two nations \share a vision for the future of the Asia-Pacific region as a fellowship of free Pacific nations,"" and reaffirmed the U.S. commitment to regional security.
""We stand more committed than ever to a forward presence in this region,"" Bush said. ""We will continue to show American power and purpose in support of the Philippines, Australia and Thailand. We will deter aggression against the Republic of Korea.""
Bush's remarks underscored the long-standing U.S. commitment to regional security in the Pacific. But they come at a time when the war against terrorism is forcing the United States to confront new threats. The U.S. military has recently begun training troops in the Philippines to fight the Abu Sayyaf guerrilla group. In recent weeks, authorities have also identified a sophisticated terrorist organization in Southeast Asia affiliated with Osama bin Laden's al Qaeda network. Since early December, police in Singapore, Malaysia and the Philippines have arrested more than three dozen suspected members of the group, known as Jemaah Islamiah.
Bush, elaborating a bit more each day on his criticism of Iran, Iraq and North Korea, said he believes world leaders are increasingly sympathetic to his decision to treat hostile regimes as terrorists if they threaten the United States or their neighbors with nuclear, biological or chemical weapons. But Bush did not repeat in his speech Tuesday his earlier claim that the three countries form an ""axis of evil.""
""I assure you today: Freedom will prevail,"" Bush said. ""Civilization and terrorism cannot coexist. By defeating terror, we will defend the peace of the world.""
Hours before flying to South Korea for a visit to the Demilitarized Zone, which bisects the Korean Peninsula, he issued the latest in a string of pointed rebukes to North Korea.
""We seek a peaceful region where the proliferation of missiles and weapons of mass destruction does not threaten humanity,"" he said. ""We seek a region in which demilitarized zones and missile batteries no longer separate people with a common heritage and a common future.""
Secretary of State Colin Powell, who joined Bush here, responded to some European critics of Bush's aggressive posture, saying some of them ""have perhaps gone a little far"" with their objections.
""Let's not swoon,' Powell said. ""We'll be in contact with you. We'll be in discussion with you. We will share with you our ideas and our vision. And so before everybody starts to put us in a state of war tomorrow, we're talking to you.\
