The Japanese prime minister has told the Saudi Arabian Crown Prince that Japan will support the Middle Eastern country's reforms centered on industrial diversification and reducing its dependence on crude oil.
Prime Minister Suga Yoshihide and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman talked on the phone on Thursday.
Japan's Crown Prince Akishino has been proclaimed to the public as heir to the Imperial throne. It was the last in a series of ceremonies associated with the succession of the throne.
The Prince, whose given name is Fumihito, became first in the line of succession in May last year. That was when his older brother, Emperor Naruhito, ascended the throne after their father's abdication.
Japan's Prince Hisahito turns 14 on Sunday. He is the nephew of Emperor Naruhito and second in line to the throne after his father, Crown Prince Akishino.
Prince Hisahito became a second grader at a junior high school in Tokyo in April. While the school was closed due to the coronavirus until early June, he went to class on-line.
Japan's Prime Minister has met with Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince to discuss ways to ease political tension in the Middle East.
The talks between Shinzo Abe and Mohammed bin Salman were held on Sunday in Al-Ula, a city in Saudi Arabia's northwest. Earlier, Abe met with King Salman bin Abdulaziz in the capital Riyadh.