Former U.S. envoy John Roos among Japan’s spring decorations recipients

Former U.S. Ambassador to Japan John Roos is among the 112 overseas nationals acknowledged on this 12 months’s spring decorations for his or her notable contributions to relations with Japan, the federal government stated Friday.

Roos, who served within the put up from 2009 to 2013, might be amongst these receiving the Grand Cordon of the Order of the Rising Solar, the best honor to be given to overseas nationals on this spring’s commendations.

The 67-year-old stated he was “deeply honored” by the popularity and wished to thank the Japanese folks for the “superb years” he spent there.

Roos was the primary U.S. consultant to attend the annual ceremony in Hiroshima in 2010 to commemorate the victims of the atomic bombing by the US on the finish of World Conflict II. This ultimately led to the historic go to by then-U.S. President Barack Obama six years later.

Talking of that point, Roos stated he felt that the 2 international locations “proceed to carry a particular place in making an attempt to get rid of all nuclear weapons from the face of the earth,” an goal additionally sought by Obama.

Roos’ tenure was additionally marked by the 2011 huge earthquake and tsunami that devastated northeastern Japan and triggered meltdowns on the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear energy plant.

Because the ambassador, he was on the forefront of “Operation Tomodachi,” a rescue and reduction operation collectively carried out by the U.S. army and Japan’s Self Protection Forces, which got here to represent the bilateral alliance.

“When you’ve gotten the bond that our two international locations have, it wasn’t a troublesome resolution to do all the pieces we might to handle the disaster,” he stated.

The overseas recipients, from 59 international locations and areas, embrace Abbas Araghchi, who served as Iran’s ambassador to Japan from 2008 to 2011. He might be conferred the Order of the Rising Solar, Gold and Silver Star.

“I did my finest to advertise the connection between Iran and Japan. I’m extraordinarily pleased,” he stated.

Araghchi, 59, performed a significant position when then-Prime Minister Shinzo Abe visited Iran’s capital Tehran and then-Iranian President Hassan Rouhani visited Japan, each in 2019.

His embassy additionally aided the Japanese folks within the aftermath of the 2011 catastrophe, for instance by serving Iranian dishes to folks in Iwate Prefecture.

Amongst 4,034 Japanese nationals to be embellished, 453 are girls, the best quantity for the reason that honors system was reformed in 2003. A complete of 1,862 recipients come from the non-public sector.

Bunmei Ibuki, 84, a former speaker of the Home of Representatives, might be conferred the Grand Cordon of the Order of the Paulownia Flowers, the best honor on this spring commendations.

Makiko Tanaka, 78, Japan’s first feminine overseas minister and daughter of former Prime Minister Kakuei Tanaka, might be one of many 11 recipients of the Grand Cordon of the Order of the Rising Solar.

Award-winning actress Kaori Momoi, 71, who had a task in Rob Marshall’s “Memoirs of a Geisha,” will obtain the Order of the Rising Solar, Gold Rays with Rosette.

Honorees for trade promotion embrace Kenji Fujiyoshi, 78, former president of Mitsui Chemical compounds Inc. He’ll get the Order of the Rising Solar, Gold and Silver Star.

The award ceremony might be held on the Imperial Palace in Tokyo on Could 10.