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.
Other than the Land Cruiser, Toyota's longest-running model is the Crown, a large rear-wheel-drive sedan that has been a mainstay on Japanese streets for 65 years. It has faithfully served as taxis, police cars, town cars, and something a Japanese grandfather would proudly own. However, a new report from a major Japanese newspaper, the Chunichi Shimbun, says Toyota will be killing it off next year.
The Crown was introduced in 1955, at a time when most Japanese citizens could not afford their own vehicles. Most cars were sold to taxi services, but their ubiquity made them a staple of city streets. It was even Toyota's first import to the U.S., sold here from 1957-71. Each successive generation grew more luxurious as Japan's economy boomed, and the model became synonymous with Toyota's decades-long dominance of the domestic market.
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.