Given China's growing presence in the South Pacific, Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi has emphasized the need for cooperation with the island nations across a range of fields.

Déjà vu abounds in Tokyo. Markets are celebrating a Japanese prime minister dusting off the same-old-same-old economic policies as if something new and exciting is afoot.

TOKYO, Feb 24 (Reuters) - Japan has requested that its treatment under a new U.S. tariff regime be as favourable as an agreement reached by the two sides last year, the government said on Tuesday.