Japanese celebrities such as popular duo Yoasobi and retired wheelchair tennis great Shingo Kunieda are among the guests at a state dinner Wednesday hosted by U.S. President Joe Biden and his wife Jill for Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, the White House said.
From the U.S. side, former President Bill Clinton and his wife Hillary, a former secretary of state, along with movie star Robert De Niro and other celebrities are attending the event to mark Kishida's state visit, the first by a Japanese premier in nine years.
Yoasobi has become popular among young people in Japan with its song "Idol" becoming a smash hit recently. Kunieda, a winner of 28 Grand Slam titles and three Paralympic gold medals in the men's singles, received the People's Honor Award from Kishida last year.
Japanese business leaders, including Masayoshi Son, CEO of investment and tech giant SoftBank Group Corp., and Hiroshi Mikitani, chairman of e-commerce giant Rakuten Group Inc., are also invited, with Kishida aiming to boost economic ties with the United States.
Earlier Wednesday, Kishida and Biden agreed at their summit to bolster their security alliance with China's increasing military and economic assertiveness in the Indo-Pacific region in mind, vowing to work together to strengthen supply chains of key products.
After the meeting, Kishida participated in a ceremony to commemorate Japan's gift to the United States of 250 cherry trees, which will be planted around the Tidal Basin in Washington, the Foreign Ministry said.
In 1912, 3,000 cherry trees were sent to Washington by then Tokyo Mayor Yukio Ozaki. The growing number of cherry trees planted around the Tidal Basin along the Potomac River has become a symbol of friendship between Japan and the United States.
