Zelensky Attends Enthronement Ceremony of Japanese Emperor Naruhito (VIDEO)

Emperor Naruhito has officially announced his accession to the throne today.

During a working visit to Japan, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and his wife Olena attended the enthronement of Emperor Naruhito.

As reported by the head of state's press service, Zelensky became the first Ukrainian president invited to the enthronement. The ceremony lasted more than half an hour.

“It is a great honor for me to take part in the enthronement of Emperor Naruhito, — Zelensky said after the ceremony. — Holding an ancient rite in modern Japan is an example of how one state can combine both deep respect for traditions and the introduction of the latest high technologies to improve the life of every person.”

In Japan, the Ukrainian president is also due to meet with the leadership of the parliamentary chambers, business representatives and leaders of foreign countries.

The new 126th Emperor of Japan Naruhito assumed his powers on May 1, after his 85-year-old father Akihito abdicated the throne.

59-year-old Naruhito became the first emperor born after World War II, and he was raised in a fairly modern spirit. If Akihito was taught as a child that the Japanese monarch had a divine essence and was a god in the form of a mortal being, then by Naruhito's childhood such notions had become a thing of the past: his grandfather Hirohito, under pressure from American authorities, declared himself a human being back in 1946.

Moreover, Naruhito is the first emperor who was raised by his parents within the family, rather than by nannies and chamberlains. He is also the first emperor who received an education abroad: in 1982 Naruhito graduated from the history department of the aristocratic Gakushuin University in Tokyo, and then spent two years at Oxford, where he lived in an ordinary student dormitory, which was also a novelty for Japanese monarchs.

On Tuesday, October 22, Naruhito officially announced his accession to the throne in accordance with the country's constitution and the Imperial House Law. The enthronement ceremony took place in the Pine Tree Hall of the Imperial Palace in Tokyo. Next to Naruhito was his wife, 55-year-old Empress Masako.

To take part in the ceremony, 400 representatives from 174 countries and territories arrived in Tokyo, including more than 70 monarchs and presidents.

“Having held the enthronement ceremony, we announce this to the state and to the whole world, — the emperor said, pledging to fulfill his duties as the symbol of Japan and the unity of its people.