The Ambassador of Japan to Turkmenistan Sasaki Hiroshi hosted on 21 February 2025 a reception to celebrate the birthday of His Majesty Emperor Naruhito.
On behalf of the government of Turkmenistan, Deputy Chairman of the Cabinet of Ministers, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Turkmenistan Rashid Meredov attended the reception.
Ambassador Sasaki Hiroshi delivered his speech at the reception in Turkmen. Here is the full text of his speech:
Honorable President of Turkmenistan Your Excellency Mr. Serdar BERDIMUHAMEDOV, Honorable National Leader of the Turkmen people Your Excellency Mr. Gurbanguly BERDIMUHAMEDOV and Honorable Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Turkmenistan Your Excellency Mr. Rashid MEREDOV,
Dear members of the diplomatic corps in Turkmenistan and distinguished guests,
On behalf of the Government of Japan, I would like to express my sincere gratitude for your participation in today’s reception to celebrate the birthday of His Majesty the Emperor of Japan.
His Majesty Emperor NARUHITO will celebrate his 65th birthday the day after tomorrow, February 23rd.
Since it is not historically certain when our country was founded as a nation and when the Imperial family began, it is the custom of Japanese embassies around the world, like a custom of United Kingdom, to hold the National Reception in honor of the birthday of the current Emperor of Japan.
Needless to say, the level of friendship and cooperation between Japan and Turkmenistan is high. Once again, I would like to thank all those who have contributed to the development of bilateral relations between our two countries over the years.
In April, Japan will host the World Expo Osaka, Kansai. On this occasion of the historic event, President of Turkmenistan, Mr. Serdar BERDIMUHAMEDOV will visit Japan. I will do my best to make his first visit as President a fruitful one for both countries.
For today’s reception, we have invited two masters of Japanese dance and shamisen player from Japan. Ms. UEDA Chiho is a Japanese dancer who is active both in Japan and abroad. Mr. KIKUCHI Yutaka is a shamisen (a traditional Japanese musical instrument) player, and is particularly active on the “Kabuki” stages.
Cultural performances are also planned in cooperation with the Turkmen National Institute of World Languages named after Azadi and the Turkmen National Conservatory. I hope you will enjoy authentic Japanese traditional performing arts.
In addition, today we will serve Sushi, Sake and “Made in Japan” whiskey. I hope you will enjoy the reception and feel a part of Japanese culture, even if only for a short time.
Thank you very much for your attention. /// nCa, 22 February 2025
Here are some pictures from the event:
