Japan Imperial Couple's European Trip "Significant": Expert

Tokyo, June 14 (Jiji Press)--Komazawa University professor Naotaka Kimizuka has praised the ongoing visit to the Netherlands and Belgium by Japanese Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako as "extremely significant."

The visit to the two European countries as state guests "will be a trip that further deepens the bonds formed over many years with both nations," said Kimizuka, an expert on foreign royal families.

"The trip to the two constitutional monarchies, both of which are original members of what is now the European Union, is extremely significant," he added.

The Emperor and Empress arrived in Amsterdam on Saturday on a two-week trip ending on June 26. Their family has strong ties with the royal families of both the Netherlands and Belgium.

Japan's relations with the Netherlands have seen ups and downs, as anti-Japan sentiment persisted over the country's treatment of Dutch soldiers held in present-day Indonesia as prisoners of war during World War II.

[Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]