Japan Welcomes Philippine Pres. Marcos at Imperial Palace

Tokyo, May 27 (Jiji Press)–A welcoming ceremony for Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and his wife was held at the Imperial Palace in Tokyo on Wednesday morning, attended by Japanese Emperor Naruhito, Empress Masako, Crown Prince Akishino and Crown Princess Kiko. The event at the palace’s Eastern Court marked the first state guest reception since the visit of Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva in March last year and the third such ceremony in Japan’s Reiwa era, which started in 2019 with Emperor Naruhito’s enthronement. During the ceremony, the national anthems of both countries were played, and Marcos received a guard of honor. Following the event, the president and his wife held talks with the Emperor and the Empress for about 20 minutes in the “Take no Ma” audience room at the palace. The Emperor told the couple he is deeply pleased to welcome them as state guests in the 70th anniversary year of the normalization of diplomatic ties, according to the Imperial Household Agency. In response, Marcos expressed profound gratitude, the agency said. After the meeting, the Emperor recalled that he stopped at a Philippine airport during a trip to Australia when he was in the third grade of junior high school, saying it was the first foreign land he had stepped on. Marcos then invited the Emperor and the Empress to visit the Philippines, saying that a stopover alone was not enough, according to the agency. A banquet will take place at the palace in the evening. At the function, Prince Hisahito, the 19-year-old son of the Crown Prince and the Crown Princess, who is in his second year at the University of Tsukuba, will mark his first participation in an event for a state guest. Marcos is the first Philippine president to visit Japan since 2015. This year, the Philippines serves as the chair of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]