Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee Tuesday met Emperor Akihito at the Imperial Palace before his departure for home. The two met for about 20 minutes before they proceeded to a luncheon in honour of Vajpayee.
Crown Prince Naruhito, Prince Tomohito of Mikasa and Japanese Premier Junichiro Koizumi and foreign minister Makiko Tanaka were among those who attended the luncheon. Speaking on the contentious issue of CTBT, Vajpayee said that relations with Japan did not take a beating because of the test ban treaty though there was difference of opinion. “They asked us to sign the CTBT treaty. We told them that we have certain objections on it. But the issue has not soured our relations. This shows the soundness of the relations between the two countries,” Vajpayee said.
Earlier, Vajpayee met Japanese parliamentarians at a meeting organised by Indo-Japan parliamentarians' friendship league.
The league works for promotion of friendship and cooperation between India and Japan. Ninety-two members of Japanese Parliament, 70 MPs from the House of Representatives and 22 MPs from the house of councilors were present at the meeting.
Bureau Report