New Year's Message from Consul General Hanatani

Happy New Year to you! I hope that this year will be a good one for all of you, as well as for Japan and the United States.

This year marks the 150th anniversary of the 1860 Japanese Mission to the United States. Together with Katsu Kaishū and Fukuzawa Yukichi, more than eighty delegates crossed the Pacific Ocean for the first time on the Kanrin Maru and visited Hawaii, San Francisco, Washington, DC, and New York. This was on the eve of the Civil War. Incidentally, the fleet commanded by Commodore Perry crossed the Atlantic Ocean, rounded the southern tip of the African continent, traversed the Indian Ocean, and went through the Strait of Malacca, stopping by Hong Kong, Shanghai, and the Ryūkyū Islands to arrive in Uraga in 1853. Neither the Suez Canal (opened in 1869) nor the Panama Canal (opened in 1914) existed yet.

The TV series "Saka no ue no kumo" (A Cloud Upon a Slope) and "Ryōmaden" (The Life of Ryōma) are currently being aired on NHK. I am sure there are many people who ponder the future course of Japan while looking back on the tumultuous era of the close of the Edo Period and the Meiji Period and reflecting on the history carved out by these ambitious pioneers.

Last year, there was a regime change in both the United States and Japan. The new administrations in both countries reviewed various policies that had been in place under the previous administrations and are hammering out new policies. This type of regime change and policy review is a reflection of public opinion and is to be expected in a democracy. But the U.S.-Japan relationship, built over many years, is extensive and deep. I am confident that the friendly relations between the United States and Japan will not falter, but grow ever stronger and deeper under the new administrations in both countries.

Today’s amicable relations between the Southeast and Japan are greatly due to your service and efforts in various fields. It is my sincere hope that you will continue to work as a bridge to further strengthen the friendship between the U.S. and Japan. To that end, the Consulate General of Japan will make further efforts to be continuously open, helpful, and a resource you can trust when in need.

January 2010

Takuji Hanatani

Consul General of Japan in Atlanta