Officials with Japan's Imperial Household Agency are releasing a piece of history to the public for the first time. They've put the records of the Emperor who reigned before, during and after World War II, on display. The 12,000-page document details the day-to-day life of the late Emperor Hirohito.
The agency officials have displayed a copy of the records in Tokyo. They spent the past 24 years compiling information. They used more than 3,000 sources, including public documents and diaries of close aides.
The records include verbal interactions from his first meeting with then U.S. President Richard Nixon in 1971. According to the documents, the Emperor thanked Nixon for agreeing to return the islands of Okinawa to the Japanese government. Such remarks had never been made public before. After sovereignty by the United States, Okinawa was returned to Japan in 1972.
The documents also show that even after he became "the symbol of the state" under the post-war Constitution, the Emperor remained keenly interested in diplomacy and national security. He was frequently briefed on such matters by government officials.
◆reign 在位する、統治する
◆close aide 側近
◆interaction やり取り
◆sovereignty 統治権
◆brief 要点を話す、概況説明をする
