ALBAWABA - According to Japan's senior government spokesman Yoshimasa Hayashi, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman postponed a four-day trip to Japan, as his father, King Salman, was admitted to the hospital amid health concerns.
The crown prince was scheduled to begin his trip to Japan on Monday, marking his first visit since 2019. At a routine news briefing in Tokyo, Hayashi stated that the two countries would reschedule the visit, although he did not specify the new date.
was scheduled to meet with Japan's prime minister, Fumio Kishida, during the visit, the Japanese authorities said. According to Japanese media, Bin Salman, the crown prince of Saudi Arabia, was also scheduled to meet with Japanese businesses and sign a contract for the reinforcement of liquid hydrogen supply lines.
The cancellation was announced following a report by the state-run Saudi Press Agency stating that King Salman Bin Abdulaziz, the father of Prince Mohammed, was diagnosed with lung inflammation and would be receiving antibiotics in Al Salam Palace in Jeddah.
In recent years, Japan and Saudi Arabia have been developing closer ties. During a visit to the kingdom in July, Kishida declared the start of a project aimed at developing green energy using ammonia and hydrogen. Additionally, he asked the crown prince to boost funding for batteries and semiconductors.
Recently, cooperation has expanded into the field of technology, with Saudi Arabia's wealth fund holding a significant stake in Nintendo Co., one of the biggest game companies.
Alat, the new investment company in the kingdom, is working with SoftBank Group Corp. to develop an entirely automated manufacturing and engineering base in Riyadh so that industrial robots may be built there.
The cooperation is an element of Prince Mohammed's larger Vision 2030 strategy, which aims to revolutionize the Saudi economy through trillion-dollar investments in industries ranging from semiconductors and electric cars to travel.
