Tokyo, Nov. 11 (Jiji Press)--Japan's Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako met with Vietnamese leader To Lam and his wife, Ngo Phuong Ly, at the Imperial Palace in Tokyo on Wednesday.
In their 20-minute talks, Emperor Naruhito welcomed the Vietnamese couple's visit to Japan, saying that it was "extremely meaningful for promoting friendly relations between the two countries."
The Vietnamese couple invited the Emperor and Empress to visit the Southeast Asian country as state guests.
The Japanese and Vietnamese couples also talked about cultural exchanges between the two countries and music. The Emperor shared a story from his student days about playing a piece by Pyotr Tchaikovsky on the viola alongside Tetsuji Honna, who has served as principal conductor of the Vietnam National Symphony Orchestra for many years.
The four had lunch together after the meeting, with Japan's Crown Prince Akishino and Crown Princess Kiko joining them.
[Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]
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