Japan Princess Aiko Visits Dud Bomb Center in Laos

Vientiane, Nov. 19 (Jiji Press)–Princess Aiko, daughter of Japanese Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako, visited an education center on unexploded ordnances in the Lao capital of Vientiane on Wednesday. Between 1964 and 1973, during the Vietnam War, the U.S. military dropped more than 2 million tons of bombs in Laos to block supply routes for the National Liberation Front of South Vietnam. Work is still ongoing to remove unexploded ordnances. At the Cope Visitor Center, Princess Aiko viewed with a serious look a model showing numerous submunitions released from a cluster bomb. She nodded at the explanation that a submunition can destroy an area of about 30 square meters. She also met with a Japan International Cooperation Agency expert who is helping Laos create plans to remove unexploded shells, asking, “What are the difficulties of disposal?” “I hope Laos will be free of unexploded bombs,” she told center officials after the tour. On the same day, Princess Aiko also visited a martial arts center built with Japanese support and interacted with children and youths. She asked a Lao national judo team member about the attraction of the sport. The princess also viewed a Japanese language class at a combined junior and senior high school in Vientiane. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]