Bush explains why he'll attend start of Olympics

TOYAKO, Japan -- President Bush arrived on the mountainous northern Japanese island of Hokkaido on Sunday to talk to world leaders about climate change, soaring oil and gas prices and aid to Africa. But first he defended his decision to attend the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games in Beijing next month -- and he got a little help from his host, Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda, who announced he would go, too.

"I view the Olympics as an opportunity for me to cheer on our athletes," Bush said at a news conference after the two leaders met privately. He said not going to the ceremony "would be an affront to the Chinese people" that might make it "more difficult to be able to speak frankly with the Chinese leadership."

Human-rights advocates have urged a boycott of the games to protest China's crackdown on antigovernment protests in Tibet and its support of the government in Sudan.

Other world leaders, including Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany and Prime Minister Gordon Brown of Britain, are skipping the opening ceremonies. President Nicolas Sarkozy of France has said he may stay home as well, although French news reports said over the weekend he was about to announce he would attend.

But Fukuda said, "I don't think you have to really link Olympics with politics."

Bush's visit to the scenic hot springs resort at Toyako, where the leaders are gathered, is his last meeting as president with the leaders of the other Group of 8 industrialized nations. It comes as other nations are frustrated with the United States over the weak dollar and rising oil and food prices, which are threatening the global economy.

Bush met today with Dmitri Medvedev for the first time since Medvedev succeeded Vladimir Putin as Russia's president. Afterward they said they agreed on the need for North Korea and Iran to abandon their nuclear ambitions, but they did not bridge their differences over Bush's plan to build a missile defense system in Eastern Europe.

Leaders of the U.S., Japan, Britain, Germany, France, Italy, Canada and Russia planned to open the meeting today. The session ends Wednesday with a larger gathering to include eight additional countries: Australia, Brazil, China, India, Indonesia, Mexico, South Korea and South Africa.

Bush plans to press his fellow leaders to live up to their promises of more aid to Africa, a centerpiece of his own foreign policy agenda.

Climate change is another issue. Fukuda has said he would like to conclude the meeting with an agreement by the countries to cut heat-trapping gases in half by 2050. Bush has resisted a mandatory target unless developing nations like China and India sign on.

Information from The Associated Press in included in this report.