Fukuda says he'll attend opening of Beijing Games

In the latest sign of warming ties with China, Japan's prime minister said yesterday that he would attend the opening ceremony of the Beijing Olympics, which he saw as a sporting event, not a political one.

Yasuo Fukuda, speaking after talks with US President George W. Bush ahead of a Group of Eight (G8) rich nations' summit in northern Japan, said he would attend.

"There are many athletes going from Japan so it's natural that I want to cheer them on," he told a joint news conference in Hokkaido with US President George W. Bush ahead of the G8 summit.