After 6 years, Japan is preparing to welcome a state visit, which is…

The most recent state visit to Japan was to US President Donald Trump in May 2019.

Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva (left) during a meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Ishiba Shigeru in Rio de Janeiro in November 2024. (Source: PR)

Japan and Brazil are rushing to prepare for a state visit to the land of the rising sun next month by President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.

The Asahi Shimbun newspaper, citing several government sources, said the Brazilian leader's visit will take place from March 24-27, a major event in celebration of the 130th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Japan and Brazil.

Lula will become the first state guest to visit Tokyo since Donald Trump visited six years ago. State visits have been postponed due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Government officials want to strengthen ties with Brazil, a key member of the increasingly influential Southern Hemisphere group of newly developed and developing nations, the Asahi Shimbun reported.

After arriving in Tokyo on March 24, President Lula is scheduled to meet Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako and attend a reception at the Imperial Palace on March 25 before meeting Prime Minister Ishiba Shigeru the following day. The two sides are expected to issue a joint statement, addressing the need to maintain and strengthen the international order.

The Brazilian leader is accompanied by a delegation of about 100 people, including many business executives, who are expected to meet with Japanese counterparts to discuss expanding investment in Brazil, which has fallen sharply due to the Covid-19 pandemic, according to a senior Foreign Ministry official.

The two governments are also working to sign dozens of economic memorandums of understanding related to a zero-carbon future, resource development and improving health care.

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