Japanese Emperor Naruhito visited one of Britain’s top medical research centers on Wednesday as the second day of a state visit highlighted the scientific and cultural ties between the countries.
The 64-year-old emperor and his wife, Empress Masako, were welcomed in London on Tuesday by King Charles III and his wife, Queen Camilla, with a gun salute, a military parade and a carriage ride to Buckingham Palace, ahead of a state banquet.
In his speech at the event, Charles, 75, who was diagnosed with cancer earlier this year, spoke of how Britain and Japan shared a spirit of collaboration and innovation, making the Francis Crick Institute’s biomedical research center a fitting place to to visit.
The institute is based in central London and was founded to understand the biology underlying health and disease. It focuses on breaking barriers between different scientific disciplines to study cancer, vaccines, genetics and more.
It also supports a number of partnerships between Britain and Japan.
The institute’s chief executive and director, Paul Nurse, prepared a petri dish for the Emperor to inspect under a microscope and gave him some insight into the work of the institute.
The centre’s research into cancer is particularly relevant to the royal family.
In addition to Charles’ illness, his daughter-in-law Catherine, wife of the heir to the throne Prince William, is undergoing preventive chemotherapy treatment against cancer.
Emperor Naruhito had said before the visit that he was grateful to the king for hosting him and his wife despite his illness, which led to him canceling his public appearances between February and June.
The Emperor also visited the Royal College of Music and attended a banquet at London’s Guildhall later on Wednesday.
