The scene is set at the Allianz Riviera in Nice in 2023. The Rugby World Cup is in full swing, and Japan is facing England on the Niçois turf. In the stands, Prince Albert II is with the Japanese delegation, alongside Princess Akiko of Mikasa.
“I remember the Sovereign encouraging our team without reservation, applauding the players’ great moves wholeheartedly. His deep passion for rugby has impressed me a lot. This anecdote shows the depth of the relationship between Monaco and Japan,” recalled the cousin of the Japanese Emperor while in the Principality over the weekend to celebrate the twenty years of diplomatic relations between her country and Monaco.
The royal couple welcomed Princess Akiko of Mikasa, a member of the imperial family, on Saturday, March 21st.
Princess Akiko spoke a few words in French before switching to her native language to emphasize that “long before the establishment of formal diplomatic ties, the imperial family and the princely family are connected by a very strong friendship.”
“A relationship that is constantly renewed,” confirmed Prince Albert II while welcoming their imperial guest alongside Princess Charlene.
Taiko drums resonated at Larvotto
On the forecourt of the Grimaldi Forum on Saturday morning, just a stone’s throw from the Japanese garden, the entire culture of the Land of the Rising Sun was honored to mark this anniversary. Craft workshops, product tastings, and especially a show were featured.
And the present audience was transported 10,000 kilometers away by the vibrations of the taiko, traditional drums used by the Rising Sun group in a performance combining delicacy, strength, and tradition of Japan. Then the most Monegasque of Japanese, Mimoza Koike, a dancer in the Monte-Carlo Ballet Company, delivered a suspended performance.
These examples show that culture is a bridge between Monaco and Japan, a point confirmed by the Ambassador of the Principality to Tokyo, Didier Gamerdinger: “Economically there are existing links but not so easy to maintain with the distance. Culture, however, brings us together and helps us build relationships. Japanese culture is appreciated in Monaco, and Monaco is relatively known in Japan through the Grand Prix, the princely family, elements that create connections, more than one might think.”
An ancient relationship between the two monarchies
The association Monaco Friends of Japan fosters this exchange, and this twentieth anniversary will be celebrated throughout the year with a series of artistic and culinary events. A way to honor a friendship that, on paper, did not seem innate between two nations so far apart.
“And yet,” continues Didier Gamerdinger, “since 1969, Prince Rainier III appointed his first honorary consul of Monaco in Japan to help the Principality prepare for its participation in the World Expo held in Osaka in 1970. Prince Rainier and Princess Grace visited Japan several times, visiting the Emperor, inaugurating the Floralie. It is an ancient relationship that brings us together, between the two monarchies’ systems.”
