Japan-United States of America Relations
Prime Minister Kishida’s Attendance at a Cherry Tree Sapling Presentation Ceremony
(Photo: Cabinet Public Affairs Office)
(Photo: Cabinet Public Affairs Office)
On April 10th, commencing at 3:00 p.m. (local time, 4:00 a.m. on April 11th, Japan time) for approximately 20 minutes, Mr. KISHIDA Fumio, Prime Minister of Japan, during his official visit to Washington D.C., attended a cherry tree sapling presentation ceremony. The overview of the ceremony is as follows.
- At the outset, Mr. Charles Sams, Director of the National Park Service, explained about the memorial regarding the gift of cherry trees from Japan to the United States 112 years ago as a testament of friendship between the two countries.
- In response, Prime Minister explained that he had decided to donate 250 cherry trees to further strengthen the ties between Japan and the U.S. and to pray for the further development of the U.S., which will celebrate its 250th anniversary in 2026, and that, as a first step, he would donate cherry tree saplings brought from Japan. He also stated that the cherry trees around the Tidal Basin would be a symbol of the strong ties between Japan and the U.S. He expressed his hope that the cherry trees around the Tidal Basin will bloom forever as a symbol of the strong ties between Japan and the United States.
- Mayor Bowser of the District of Columbia and Deputy Secretary of State Campbell expressed their heartfelt appreciation for the cherry blossoms from Japan and also stated that the cherry blossoms of Washington D.C. are the most important gift the U.S. has ever received from a foreign country, along with the Statue of Liberty at New York.
In 1912, thanks to the efforts of then Tokyo Mayor Yukio Ozaki and many other people in Japan and the United States, approximately 3,000 cherry trees were presented to Washington, D.C. from Japan as a symbol of peace and goodwill between the two countries.
A monument stands on the north bank of the Tidal Basin, where the first Japanese cherry trees were planted, and next to the monument is a stone lantern that was presented by Japan in 1954 to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the signing of the Japan-U.S. Treaty of Peace and Amity. The Cherry Tree Sapling Presentation Ceremony was held in front of the stone lantern.
According to the National Park Service, the U.S. Department of the Interior, there are currently about 3,800 cherry trees planted around the Tidal Basin. The National Cherry Blossom Festival is held every year in conjunction with the cherry blossom season, attracting more than 1.5 million visitors every year and becoming one of the largest festivals in the U.S. to celebrate the friendship between Japan and the U.S.