Chinmaya IAS Academy – Current Affairs Chinmaya IAS Academy – Current Affairs
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He will land in Tokyo on October 21 after a four-day visit to the Philippines
President Ram Nath Kovind will join Britain’s Prince Charles, Chinese Vice-President Wang Qishan and leaders of several Asian countries in attending the enthronement ceremony of Japan’s new Emperor Naruhito on October 22. Mr. Kovind, who leaves on Thursday for a four-day state visit to the Philippines, will travel to Tokyo on October 21. Officials said nearly 80 world leaders are expected at the ceremony and banquets, which will be held over two days. The royal families of the Netherlands, Belgium and Saudi Arabia are among the invitees. Mr. Kovind will also visit a Buddhist temple in Tokyo to plant a Bodhi tree and travel to the city of Kakegawa, about 230 km away, to inaugurate an Indian cultural and yoga centre there, funded by a Japanese citizen of Indian origin. “President Kovind’s visit underlines the deep traditional and civilisational bonds between India and Japan, and shared heritage of Buddhism,” Vijay Singh, Secretary (East), External Affairs Ministry, told presspersons.
Important ties
“His participation in the enthronement ceremony signifies the high importance India attaches to Japan,” Ms. Singh added. No bilateral talks are expected during Mr. Kovind’s visit, though he will attend the court banquet hosted by Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako and a state banquet hosted by Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. In the Philippines, the bilateral talks will focus on the joint challenge of terrorism. Indian and Philippines officials will hold a joint working group on terrorism, with a focus on fighting urban terrorism, narco-terrorism, and work on information-sharing on terror groups. India had donated $500,000 to the Philippines for the reconstruction of Marawi city, which was destroyed during a siege in May 2017 by a terror group claiming allegiance to the Islamic State (IS) in which more than 1,000 people were killed. The two sides will discuss strengthening counter-terror cooperation, officials said.
