US President George W Bush's trip to Asia has helped ease concerns that Washington is shifting its gaze away from the region in the wake of its conquest of Iraq, but critics say that whether the attention is genuine or welcome under the circumstances is another matter.

The two issues that appear foremost on Bush's mind during his rapid ride through the region should add to this air of relief - Washington's words of thanks to the Asian countries that helped in the US-led 'war on terror' and the war on Iraq, and Bush's shopping for more troops and money from the region to bolster the US grip on Iraq.

Halfway into his speedy journey - to six countries in as many days - the US leader has received assurances that Asian countries are happy to follow in Washington's footsteps, unlike its European allies, such as Germany and France.

Japan set the tone as to where Bush's shopping spree may be headed. By the end of his 15-hour stop in Tokyo last week, the first Asian city on his tour, the Japanese government had promised Bush US$1.5 billion as an initial package to help rebuild Iraq and assured him that a contingent of Japanese troops would soon be heading to Iraq.

According to the Japanese newspaper Yomiuri Shimbun, the country's financial commitment to aid US-efforts in Iraq, including loans, ''is expected to amount to US$5 billion over a four-year period until 2007''.

Japan's contribution, the paper added, would amount to close to 10 percent of the estimated US$55 billion that the World Bank and the United Nations said would be needed to rebuild war-ravaged Iraq.

South Korea's aid

Barely had Washington time to digest this news when word emerged from South Korea that it, too, would be coming to Bush's rescue. Seoul announced over the weekend that it would not only send troops to bolster the US military presence in Iraq, but also commit US$200 million to help Washington rebuild the shattered country.

The troops may be sent ahead before South Korea holds defence ministers' talks with the United States in Seoul from Nov 17-18, the Korea Herald, an English newspaper, reported Monday.

''It is expected that South Korea will send more than 5,000 forces - including combatants, engineers, and medics - to the northern city of Mosul to replace the US 101st Airborne Division, which plans to leave the region in February or March,'' it added.

Seoul's support is coming although South Korea is not on Bush's Asian tour, which got underway Friday. He had a 16-hour stop in Japan, then went to the Philippines for an eight-hour visit, before going to Thailand for two days and 15 hours, including attendance of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) summit.

Then he goes to Singapore for 15 hours, Indonesia for three hours, and Australia for 21 hours.

Japan and South Korea's contribution toward Washington's occupation of Iraq comes on top of assistance it is receiving from South-east Asia.

The Philippines has sent close to 100 soldiers, police and health workers to Iraq and Thailand has sent over 400 troops to the Iraqi holy city of Karbala.

Bush has already hinted at how he regards Australia, the third country apart from Britain that sent troops to bolster the US-led invasion of Iraq in March.

Washington's 'sheriff'

The US president told Australian journalists on the eve of his current tour that he regarded Australia as Washington's 'sheriff' in the region.

The phrase would have had a familiar ring to Australian Prime Minister John Howard, who in an effort that was seen as trying to kowtow to the US government remarked in 2000 that his country would serve as Washington's 'deputy sheriff' in Asia.

Bush's effort to re-engage with this part of Asia has also resulted in Asian governments' coming to terms with the amount of muscle the United States will flex to push its security agenda at every turn.

Over the weekend, for instance, Washington succeeded in getting its way at a ministers meeting of the 21 economies that are members of Apec.

This meeting in the Thai capital was a forerunner to the two-day summit featuring the leaders of Apec countries, including Bush, on Oct. 20-21.

''The United States virtually stole the show at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation meeting (on Saturday), announcing a US$5.4 million offer to fight terrorism,'' the English-language daily Bangkok Post reported on Sunday.

''But the US only secured qualified support for its call to ban man-portable missiles, a result observers attributed to Malaysia, which held to its view that other forums were more appropriate to deal with terrorism,'' the paper added.

Malaysia's willingness to stand up to the US was demonstrated last week, after the US delegation announced at a senior officials meeting that it wanted the production, shipment and sale of shoulder-fired anti-aircraft missiles (also known as SAMs) banned.

But Kuala Lumpur's quest to separate trade and terrorism issues during the meeting of Apec economies appears a mere blip when set against Washington's determination during Bush's tour of Asia to draw unequivocal support for its key concern - its 'war against terrorism'.

'Exercising imperial might'

Even China, which was also unhappy at the stress on security concerns at a meeting meant for economic issues, failed to get US officials to think otherwise, Kavi Chongkittavorn, senior editor at The Nation newspaper, told IPS.

The 21-member economies of Apec are Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, Mexico, Papua New Guinea, New Zealand, Peru, Philippines, Russia, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand, United States and Vietnam.

The tenor of the US position during Bush's tour through this region continues to draw fire from some commentators.

''George W Bush has come to Asia not to give away but to solicit money, not to deploy more American troops but to ask the governments of the region to send their own soldiers to secure Iraq, a country it destroyed and occupied,'' wrote political analyst Randolf David in the English-language daily The Philippine Daily Inquirer.

''The president of the most powerful country in the world,'' he argued, ''has come not so much to display power as to seek a cover for the crude exercise of its imperial might.''