U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates urged Japanese leaders Thursday to step up their efforts on global security, focusing on Tokyo's stalled efforts to extend an anti-terror naval mission in the Indian Ocean. Gates, who arrived from South Korea on Wednesday for a two-day visit, met with Foreign Minister Masahiko Komura in the first of a string of meetings _ including talks with Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda _ that stretched into the evening. The two discussed Japan's resuming a halted naval mission in the Indian Ocean and building a joint U.S.-Japan missile defense system, Komura said after the meeting. They also agreed China should be more transparent about its growing military budget.
