U.S. national security adviser Condoleezza Rice held talks with Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi and other officials on Wednesday, and vowed to pursue a diplomatic solution to the North Korean nuclear crisis. Rice, in meetings with Koizumi and Foreign Minister Yoriko Kawaguchi, also agreed to remain in close contact with Tokyo on the case of Charles Jenkins, a former U.S. soldier married to a Japanese woman who was abducted to North Korea decades ago and later repatriated. Washington says Jenkins, 64, is a deserter. Finding a solution to his situation would give Koizumi, whose ruling party may be losing ground to its main opposition rival, a huge boost in elections to the upper house to be held on Sunday. Rice’s visit to Tokyo is the first leg of a three-nation Asian tour that will take her to China on Thursday and Seoul on Friday for talks described as “strategic” by officials.Full Story