Japan foreign minister Aso visiting Baghdad

TOKYO, Aug 3 (Reuters) Foreign Minister Taro Aso arrived in Baghdad and met Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshiyar Zebari in the first trip to the Iraqi capital by a Japanese cabinet minister since the Iraq war began, officials said.

Aso left Tokyo yesterday night, Kyodo news agency quoted Japanese government sources as saying.

Television footage showed him meeting Zebari today and media reports said he was expected to meet Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki later to discuss economic aid and logistical support provided by the Japanese military.

A Foreign Ministry official confirmed that Aso was visiting Baghdad but declined to give further details.

Japan sent about 600 ground troops to southern Iraq to provide reconstruction and humanitarian aid as part of its largest and riskiest overseas mission since World War Two.

The soldiers all returned home last month, but Japan's air force is continuing to transport supplies from Kuwait to the U S-led coalition in Iraq.

Aso, a potential candidate to succeed Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi when he steps down in September, may be trying to boost his image by engaging in active diplomacy, Kyodo said quoting political analysts.

The dispatch of the Japanese military, which began in early 2004, symbolised Tokyo's willingness to put ''boots on the ground'' and won praise from Washington, its closest security ally.

But the mission was opposed by many at home including critics who said it violated Japan's pacifist constitution.

REUTERS DKB RS1621