The Japan-U.S. row over beef imports looms as a grave problem that could develop into serious bilateral friction. Until recently the two countries had enjoyed what many experts regarded as the best relations yet in the postwar years. Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi supported U.S. President George W. Bush's wars in Afghanistan and Iraq after the 9/11 attacks, and dispatched Self-Defense Force troops to Iraq.
In the 2004 U.S. presidential campaign, Bush managed to prevent beef trade from becoming an issue in consideration of his personal friendship with Koizumi.
In January, however, beef trade did emerge as a new political issue in Washington as Congress started a new session. On March 9, Bush made a personal telephone call to Koizumi, asking him to try harder to lift Japan's ban on beef imports from the United States.