Washington - US President Barack Obama held his first meeting with a foreign leader at the White House on Tuesday, telling Japanese Prime Minister Taro Aso that US relations with his country are the "cornerstone" of security in East Asia.

Aso's visit shows the importance of the US-Japanese relationship, Obama said, as the two countries try to pull out of their worst recession in decades. The United States and Japan respectively boast the two largest economies in the world.

"It's a testimony to the strong partnership between the United States and Japan," Obama said. "The alliance that we have is the cornerstone of security in East Asia. It's one that my administration wants to strengthen."

Aso arrived in the United States Monday night, suffering from Japan's worst recession in more than 50 years and facing political pressure at home to resign. Obama has reached out to East Asian countries in an effort to overcome the global economic downturn that has shed millions of jobs in the US.

"We as a number one and second biggest economies of the world, we will have to work together, hand in hand," Aso said. "And I think we are the only two nations which can offer enough to solve those very critical, vital issue of the world."

US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton's first trip abroad last week including visits to Japan and China, as well as Indonesia and South Korea, to explore ways to cooperate in addressing the world's economy. Her trip also signalled the importance the Obama administration intends to place on the US relationship with Asia. (dpa)