Updated
Jun 22, 2024, 07:25 AM
Published
Jun 22, 2024, 07:06 AM
LONDON - Emperor Naruhito and his wife begin a week long visit to Britain on June 22, visiting Oxford University where they both studied and attending a formal banquet with King Charles, but there are no plans for a meeting with Prime Minister Rishi Sunak.
Emperor Naruhito and his wife, Empress Masako, had been due to make the trip in 2020 when Queen Elizabeth was still alive but it was postponed because of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Their first overseas trip together after his enthronement was to Queen Elizabeth's funeral in 2022, and ahead of the state visit Emperor Naruhito, 64, spoke of the kindness the British royals had shown to him when he arrived in Britain to study in the early 1980s.
He recalled how the late queen had invited him to Buckingham Palace for tea which she made herself.
"I have fond memories of the heartwarming hospitality I received from her majesty the queen and the royal family, making me feel like I was part of their family," he told a news conference held in Tokyo.
The emperor's trip is the third state visit of King Charles' reign, but the first since it was revealed earlier in 2024 that he had been diagnosed with cancer.
Emperor Naruhito said he was grateful the king would host them despite his illness, and he also sent good wishes to King Charles' daughter-in-law Kate, wife of heir Prince William, who is having preventative chemotherapy treatment for cancer.
"I understand that they are both going through a hard time, but I pray that their treatment will go smoothly and that they will have a speedy recovery," he said.
The official reason for the trip is to celebrate the long ties between the two royal families, and to demonstrate the deep relationship between the two countries.
However, the Japanese royals are also using it as a chance to return to Oxford where they both ...