US President Barack Obama will hold his first meeting with Japan's new Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly on Wednesday, officials said Friday. Obama wanted to discuss cooperation before he hosts the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Hawaii in November and travels to Bali for the East Asia summit, said Ben Rhodes, a US deputy national security advisor. Rhodes said that as it was their first meeting, Obama and Noda, who replaced hugely unpopular Naoto Kan as prime minister on September 2, would reaffirm the close alliance between the two states. Obama called Noda earlier this month and the two men pledged to work together to support the global economy and Asia's security, the White House said. Noda is Japan's sixth new prime minister in the past five years, amid chronic unpopularity of both major political parties in the close US ally. On taking office in 2009, the Obama administration moved quickly to demonstrate a commitment to relations with Japan, with Secretary of State Hillary Clinton choosing Tokyo for her first foreign visit. But relations have since seen hiccups amid the persistent instability in Japanese politics and a feud over the status of a controversial US military base on the southern island of Okinawa. Noda faces a tough array of challenges, including reviving growth in the world's third-largest economy and leading a recovery following the catastrophic earthquake and tsunami that struck Japan's northeastern coast in March. Related Links
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