Asian leaders congratulate Japan’s new emperor on enthronement

TOKYO, May 1, 2019, Kyodo. Asian leaders offered congratulations to Japan’s new Emperor Naruhito, who ascended the Chrysanthemum Throne on Wednesday a day after his father Akihito abdicated, reported the Kyodo.

South Korean President Moon Jae In said in a message of celebration that he expects Emperor Naruhito to continue to walk toward peace as his father did, according to the Foreign Ministry.

He also asked the new emperor to pay much attention and affection in developing ties between the two countries, which have been strained by Japan’s wartime past.

Chinese President Xi Jinping sent a congratulatory telegram in which he said both countries “have a long history of friendly exchanges.”

“The two sides should work together to promote peaceful development and create a bright future for bilateral relations,” Xi said in the telegram, according to Chinese media.

Xi has also sent a message and expressed his greetings and wishes to Naruhito’s father on the occasion of his abdication Tuesday, the media said.

Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, in a letter dated Wednesday, extended his “warmest congratulations on Your Majesty’s accession to the throne,” according to the city-state’s Foreign Ministry.

“As we celebrate the auspicious dawn of your reign, I am confident that the relations between our two countries will reach even greater heights. May the Japanese people achieve their aspirations of peace and unity in the new Reiwa era,” he wrote.