Asia leaders join Sochi as Obama, others stay away

TOKYO (AP) — When top Western leaders decided to stay away from Russian President Vladimir Putin’s Winter Olympics, he wasn’t exactly left friendless: he has the heads of leading Asian nations and others to help show the world that not everyone is put off by his human rights record and the anti-gay law he championed.

Unlike President Barack Obama, who declined to attend the Sochi Olympics, the leaders of China and Japan — the world’s second and third largest economies — are attending. Both say they hope their visits will boost relations with Moscow.