Gere indulges in impromptu dance with Japanese PM

TOKYO - A photo opportunity with visiting Hollywood actor Richard Gere turned into an impromptu ballroom dance session for Japan's prime minister on Tuesday.

As they faced reporters together, the 63-year-old Junichiro Koizumi grasped the actor's hand and said: "Shall we dance?," referring to the title of Gere's latest film, a remake of a Japanese movie.

The two then embraced and twirled briefly in front of the cameras.

Koizumi, who has lost much of the popstar-like popularity he boasted when he swept to power in 2001, often meets celebrities passing through Tokyo.

He hit the headlines two years ago, when he sang the Elvis Presley hit: "I want you, I need you, I love you" with actor Tom Cruise.

In a surprise statement at a promotional event on Monday, Gere had praised Koizumi for opposing the European Union's plan to lift an arms embargo imposed on China following its bloody crackdown on pro-democracy protests in 1989.

- REUTERS