Emperor Naruhito met with Luxembourg's Crown Prince Guillaume on Monday and thanked him for the financial support given by the European country following the major earthquake that hit central Japan's Noto Peninsula on New Year's Day, the Imperial Household Agency said.
The two spoke for about 20 minutes in what was their first meeting in around 10 years. They also discussed the emperor's 2012 visit to Luxembourg for the crown prince's wedding as well as the country's space exploration program.
They later retired to a separate room where they were joined by the emperor's wife Empress Masako and their daughter Princess Aiko.
Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida also held talks with the crown prince on the same day. The two discussed further deepening the friendly relationship between the two countries and strengthening their cooperation in the fields of space and startups.
During his four-day stay in Japan through Thursday, the crown prince is leading a delegation of about 70 businesspeople from the Western European nation, known as a prominent financial center.
"We hope to strengthen economic relations between the two countries," Kishida said, while Crown Prince Guillaume also expressed his desire to further friendly ties with Japan.
Japan said it has been trying to boost cooperation with Luxembourg in realizing a free and open Indo-Pacific, a vision advocated by Tokyo in a veiled bid to counter China, and in maintaining the international order based on the rule of law.
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