Crown Prince Fumihito and Crown Princess Kiko of Japan were welcomed by the Polish President Andrzej Duda and his wife, Agata Kornhauser-Duda as the royal couple begins a tour of Poland on Friday. The tour marks the centenary of Japan’s diplomatic relations with Poland and Finland. The official welcome ceremony took place at the Presidential Palace in Warshaw. Crown Prince Fumihito and Crown Princess Kiko also laid a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.
On Friday evening, Crown Prince Fumihito and Crown Princess Kiko will accompany the President and the First Lady to a performance of the traditional Noh theatre at the Warsaw’s National Theatre. They will also attend an open-air Chopin concert in the Royal Łazienki Park, and they will visit the Old Town and tour the Royal Castle.
The Crown Prince and Princess will also visit Kraków and Łowicz before leaving Poland on Tuesday. It is the first foreign visit for Crown Prince Fumihito as heir to the Japanese throne. “The Japanese Empire was the first country in Asia, and the fifth in the world, to recognise the government of Prime Minister Ignacy Paderewski,” Szczerski, The Head of the President’s Office, said, commenting on the centenary.
On Tuesday, Crown Prince Fumihito and Crown Princess Kiko will travel to Finland where they will also celebrate the centenary.
Crown Prince Fumihito is currently first in the line of succession to succeed his brother Emperor Naruhito. Japan currently bars women from ascending the throne and so Emperor Naruhito’s daughter Aiko, Princess Toshi, cannot become Empress in her own right. Crown Prince Fumihito is followed in the line of succession by his son, Prince Hisahito and his uncle, Masahito, Prince Hitachi. They are currently the only people in the line of succession, but the Imperial Family has many more female members, though they are required to abandon their Imperial title upon marriage.
