Press Releases
Former Prisoners of War (POWs) from the United States Pay Courtesy Call on State Minister for Foreign Affairs Yasuhide Nakayama
On October 14, commencing at 11:00 a.m. for approximately 45 minutes, a total of 14 people, consisting of former American prisoners of war (POWs), civilian internees and their caregivers, paid a courtesy call on State Minister for Foreign Affairs Yasuhide Nakayama. The group is visiting Japan upon the invitation from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The overview of the meeting is as follows.
1. State Minister Nakayama expressed his appreciation to the visitors for accepting the Government of Japan’s invitation and for traveling a long distance to Japan, along with saying that we need to learn from history, and although he is from a generation that does not know war, as a member of the generation that will build future Japan-U.S. relations, he is sincerely grateful for the group’s visit to Japan.
2. In response, Mr. William Sanchez, on behalf of the group, expressed gratitude for being able to visit Japan, and said the post-war recovery achieved by Japan and its development into a great economic power are astounding, and that the other participants were also extremely pleased to be able to participate in this friendship program at ages of over 90. Mr. Sanchez said Japan is one of the U.S.’ most important allies and he wants to promote friendly relations between the two countries via exchanges such as this in the future also.
3. In addition, State Minister Nakayama said Japan expresses feelings of heartfelt apology to many people, including former American POWs and civilian internees. The courtesy call took place in a congenial atmosphere among all participants.