Norihiro Okuda, ambassador of Japan, has issued the following message to mark the 82th Anniversary of the birth of the emperor of Japan:

Emperor Akihito, the 125th emperor of Japan, will be 82 years old on Dec. 23. On this auspicious occasion of the birthday of the emperor, I would like to reiterate our appreciation of the ever-strong friendship between Japan and Saudi Arabia.

The cordial relationship between the imperial family of Japan and the royal family of Saudi Arabia is the one of the key pillars of our bilateral relations.

Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman visited Japan Feb. 2014 when he was crown prince. He was warmly welcomed by the emperor and the crown prince.

The joint statement, which was issued during his visit, has been followed up steadily, and the Saudi-Japanese bilateral relation is growing ever stronger in all fields since then.

This year marks the 60th anniversary of the establishment of the diplomatic relationship between two countries and various kinds of memorial events for this anniversary have taken place during the year.

Last month, Japanese Budo Delegation, composed of 60 Japanese traditional martial arts players including Karate, Judo, Kendo and Kyudo, visited Riyadh and displayed the performance of Japanese Bud — the traditional culture intended to fulfill the perfect unity of mind (Shin), technique (Gi), and body (Tai).

Masahiko Komura, the head of the delegation and vice president of ruling Liberal Democratic Party, had a chance to meet with Crown Prince and Minister of Interior Mohammed bin Naif.

Komura handed over the letter from Prime Minister Shinzo Abe to King Salman and they discussed means of enhancing bilateral relations in diverse fields.

It is also worth mentioning that Japan has been trying to make a contribution to the development of Saudi human resources and the promotion of Saudization by Japanese enterprises in different areas of Saudi Arabia.

For instance, Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) has been working here for over the past 40 years during which it provided opportunities of getting training in Japan to more than 2,000 public servants.

Taking this celebrating opportunity, I truly look forward to further strengthening bilateral relations and promoting mutual understanding between the two countries by enhancing ‘heart-to-heart’ relationship between the citizens of the two countries through exchanges in culture, society, and economy.

Last but not least, I sincerely wish everlasting health and prosperity to both King Salman and Emperor Akihito.

Norihiro Okuda

Ambassador of Japan.