'Very cool' Japanese PM tries on Bono's shades

Tokyo - Bono on Wednesday called Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe "very cool" for daring to don the rocker's sunglasses as they talked about the fight against poverty.

The Irish superstar turned anti-poverty activist handed the premier Giorgio Armani sunglasses, which Bono is promoting as part of the "Red campaign" to fund anti-Aids programs.

Abe, in a suit with a serious look on his face, put on the shades and then quickly took them off as the cameras rolled.

Bono, wearing the trademark shades himself, said some leaders spurned the sunglasses he gave them.

"George Bush never put them on," Bono said. "The last Pope, John Paul, he put them on, and Prime Minister Abe. Very cool."

Bono, who was in Japan for concerts with U2, said he believed Abe understood his message.

"I find Mr Abe to be a very warm man and very interested in these issues," said Bono, wearing a black suit with a dark shirt.

"He cares about a lot of issues that I care about, which is global and poverty issues," he said.

Abe, 52, is bound to invite comparisons to his more flamboyant predecessor and mentor, Junichiro Koizumi, who built his public image by meeting an array of film and music stars.

Koizumi, who handed power to Abe in September, cut a new image for a Japanese premier with antics including playing air guitar next to Bush at Elvis Presley's museum and dancing cheek-to-cheek with Richard Gere.

Bono has been campaigning throughout his tour. Earlier this month, he met with Australian Treasurer Peter Costello, who is slated to become the next prime minister, to lobby for more foreign aid.

Agence France Presse