Japanese Emperor Naruhito yesterday greeted the public for the first time since his succession, expressing hope for Japan to keep pursuing peace.
Naruhito ascended the Chrysanthemum Throne on Wednesday, a day after his 85-year-old father, Akihito, abdicated.
From a balcony overlooking the palace ground, Naruhito thanked tens of thousands of well-wishers for congratulating him.
Photo: AFP
“I am deeply grateful and pleased that I am receiving celebration from you all today,” said Naruhito, wearing a formal suit and standing next to his wife, Empress Masako. “I wish for your health and happiness, and sincerely hope that our country pursues world peace hand in hand with other countries and will develop further.”
As he waved from the balcony, where he was accompanied by other members of his royal family, the spectators cheered, took photographs and waved Japanese flags.
Akihito, who became the emperor emeritus, and his wife, Michiko, were not present to avoid concerns about interference with the serving emperor.
Photo: AFP
Naruhito was scheduled to make balcony appearances several more times through the evening to greet many more people still waiting in long lines outside the palace.
An estimated 65,000 people reportedly went to the palace to celebrate.
Naruhito, at his succession ceremony on Wednesday, pledged to emulate his father in seeking peace and staying close to the people.
‘IN A DIFFERENT PLACE’: The envoy first visited Shanghai, where he attended a Chinese basketball playoff match, and is to meet top officials in Beijing tomorrow US Secretary of State Antony Blinken yesterday arrived in China on his second visit in a year as the US ramps up pressure on its rival over its support for Russia while also seeking to manage tensions with Beijing. The US diplomat tomorrow is to meet China’s top brass in Beijing, where he is also expected to plead for restraint as Taiwan inaugurates president-elect William Lai (賴清德), and to raise US concerns on Chinese trade practices. However, Blinken is also seeking to stabilize ties, with tensions between the world’s two largest economies easing since his previous visit in June last year. At the
Nearly half of China’s major cities are suffering “moderate to severe” levels of subsidence, putting millions of people at risk of flooding, especially as sea levels rise, according to a study of nationwide satellite data released yesterday. The authors of the paper, published by the journal Science, found that 45 percent of China’s urban land was sinking faster than 3mm per year, with 16 percent at more than 10mm per year, driven not only by declining water tables, but also the sheer weight of the built environment. With China’s urban population already in excess of 900 million people, “even a small portion
UNSETTLING IMAGES: The scene took place in front of TV crews covering the Trump trial, with a CNN anchor calling it an ‘emotional and unbelievably disturbing moment’ A man who doused himself in an accelerant and set himself on fire outside the courthouse where former US president Donald Trump is on trial has died, police said yesterday. The New York City Police Department (NYPD) said the man was declared dead by staff at an area hospital. The man was in Collect Pond Park at about 1:30pm on Friday when he took out pamphlets espousing conspiracy theories, tossed them around, then doused himself in an accelerant and set himself on fire, officials and witnesses said. A large number of police officers were nearby when it happened. Some officers and bystanders rushed
Beijing is continuing to commit genocide and crimes against humanity against Uyghurs and other Muslim minorities in its western Xinjiang province, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a report published on Monday, ahead of his planned visit to China this week. The State Department’s annual human rights report, which documents abuses recorded all over the world during the previous calendar year, repeated language from previous years on the treatment of Muslims in Xinjiang, but the publication raises the issue ahead of delicate talks, including on the war in Ukraine and global trade, between the top U.S. diplomat and Chinese