Japan embassy marks emperor’s birthday, envoy hails ‘long-lasting’ Amman-Tokyo ties

AMMAN — Japan regards Jordan as an “indispensable partner” in maintaining peace and stability in Middle East, said Tokyo’s envoy to Amman Hidenao Yanagi on Sunday.

The ambassador’s remarks came during an interview with The Jordan Times on the occasion of the new Japanese Emperor’s birthday, marked on February 23.

“We strongly support Jordan’s moderate and realistic foreign policy under the strong leadership of His Majesty King Abdullah,” Yanagi said.

Bilateral ties between Jordan and Japan are “strong, especially between the Hashemite Royal Family and the Japanese Imperial Family”, the ambassador noted. 

“Moreover, King Abdullah and Prime Minister Abe Shinzo have strong mutual confidence,” he added. 

The envoy highlighted the importance of personal exchanges in many fields, such as the first visit of Defence Minister Kono Taro to the Kingdom in December. 

“Defence is one of the fields which has much potential to further development. Last summer, we participated in Eager Lion for the first time. Of course, we have much potential to promote bilateral cooperation in the economic and cultural fields,” he said.

Touching on bilateral trade volume, the envoy noted that total imports from Japan to the Kingdom reached $509.5 million and total exports reached $35.63 million as of the end of 2019.

Furthermore, Japan has provided over $1.3 billion in bilateral assistance to Jordan since the beginning of the Syrian crisis.

Japan has continuously supported the water sector as a priority for assistance for Jordan with grant aid adding up to $2.5 billion, Yanagi said. 

He highlighted a new project to rehabilitate and expand the water networks in Balqa Governorate in Deir Alla and Ain Al Basha in order to support the region to deal with water shortage, which saw the handing over of a $32.6 million grant. 

In the field of the tourism and cultural heritage sector, Japan has supported Petra Museum, with grant aid of approximately $7 million, the envoy said, noting that the museum was opened last April in cooperation with Japan International Cooperation Agency and Petra Development and Tourism Region Authority.

“Moreover, Japan appreciates that Jordan receives so many refugees from Syria and neighbouring countries. Therefore, Japan continues to support Jordan with as much as we can,” he said.

Concerning UNRWA, Japan considers its role in providing humanitarian assistance to Palestine refugees, which also contributes to stability in the Middle East, as “vital”, the ambassador noted. 

Japan continues to support UNRWA politically and financially through cooperation with the international community. As one of the major donors to UNRWA, Japan contributed $43 million in 2019 to the UN agency in the areas of health, education and emergency assistances, among others, he said. 

Recently, Japan decided to provide additional support for Palestine refugees in the areas of health and women’s empowerment, consisting of $33 million, the envoy added.

“The Japanese government is actively contributing to the realisation of Middle East peace through the two-state solution by expanding donor countries and enhancing existing support for Palestine,” he said.

Regarding the Syrian refugee crisis, Yanagi said that since the onset of crisis, Japan’s humanitarian assistance through international organisations has reached over $230 million, including a new assistance package of $16.2 million, which was announced early this month. 

“We will commit ourselves to further support vulnerable people, including refugees in Jordan and host communities,” he said.

During a speech on Sunday in Amman at a reception marking the occasion, Yanagi noted that Japan’s former Emperor Akihito abdicated on April 30, 2019 at the age of 85 years old, after 30 years on the throne, and the new Emperor Naruhito acceded to the throne on May 1, 2019. 

“Now, Their Majesties Akihito and Michiko are entitled ‘Emperor Emeritus’ and ‘Empress Emerita’,” he said.

Japan still uses the term “era” for the reign of each emperor, in parallel with the Western calendar, he noted, adding that the new era of the current emperor is named “Rei-Wa”, which means “Beautiful Harmony”, and “Rei-Wa” is the 248th era in the Japanese history.

With this accession, the Japanese National Day has been moved from December to February, since the birthday of His Majesty the new Emperor Naruhito is February 23, Yanagi said, noting: “Today, His Imperial Majesty becomes 60 years old.”

The envoy recalled HRH Crown Prince Hussein’s visit to Japan last year on the occasion of the enthronement ceremony of His Majesty the new Emperor Naruhito on October 22.

During the visit to Tokyo, the Crown Prince held meetings with Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and Minister of Defence Kono Taro, he added. 

“We have been witnessing for decades close ties between both countries’ people and governments. On top of that, the traditional and long-lasting relationship lies between the Japanese Imperial family and the Hashemite Royal Family,” the ambassador said.