Japanese Emperor Akihito, wife on 6-day visit from Saturday

Japanese Emperor Akihito and his wife Empress Michiko will arrive here on Saturday on a six-day visit, their first to any South Asian country after being enthroned as Royal couple in 1990, with an aim to further strengthen the "robust" bilateral ties.

India was chosen over invitations by around three dozen countries, signifying the importance of the bilateral relationship between the two countries, Japanese officials said here today.

The visit, which comes 53 years after their trip to India as Crown Prince and Crown Princess in 1960, will be the first one by an Emperor and Empress of Japan here.

The Royal couple, to be accompanied by a 50-member delegation including former Japanese Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori, will be in India at the invitation of President Pranab Mukherjee.

Officials from Japanese Embassy said the decision on the visit was taken by Japan's cabinet considering the "warmth" of the relationship.

"This visit should be seen as part of very strong relationship the two countries forged in the last few years. The visit is a recognition of the very robust relationship and long historical ties between Japan and India," said Tamaki Tsukada, minister in Japanese Embassy.

They will meet the country's top leadership including the President and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and are likely to discuss bilateral, regional and international issues. They will also visit Chennai.

The ties between India and Japan are on the upswing. Singh had visited Japan in May during which both sides had agreed to further enhance cooperation in diverse fields, particularly in trade and investment.

The two sides had also decided to accelerate talks on a civil nuclear deal to allow Japan to export nuclear reactors to India and bolster maritime security cooperation.