TOKYO—President will meet Japan’s royalty on Wednesday, get a 21-gun salute and be feted with an Imperial banquet in the evening as formal rites welcoming him for a state visit got underway.
It will be the second day of his four-day trip, but the welcome accorded by Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko will surely be one to remember although security concerns on the South China Sea will top his agenda when he holds a summit with Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Thursday.
He will also deliver a speech at the joint session of the Japanese Diet in the afternoon during which he will inform his audience on the continued progress of the Philippines citing, in particular, the country’s economic growth and the positive investing climate.
The visit affirms the special relationship between the two countries, upgraded from bilateral to strategic partners in recent years.
Aquino was invited last year by their Majesties. It marks the second time that an Aquino has been granted state visitor status in Japan. Corazon Aquino was here on a state visit in 1986 shortly after she became president.
The visit will almost be like the five others in the past. Yesterday, Aquino attended two quick meetings with top executives from Marubeni and Kirin Holdings plus the signing of an agreement with the Japan External Trade Organization and then followed by a conference with the owners of popular apparel brand Uniqlo.
MANILA BULLETIN
