GUWAHATI, June 23: Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Tuesday confirmed the cancellation of Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s proposed visit to the state even as the leader’s visit to New Delhi would proceed as scheduled.
“Yesterday night, foreign secretary of India, Vikram Misri informed our chief secretary that owing to unavoidable reasons, the Prime Minister of Japan will not come to Assam this time. The visit will now be confined to New Delhi only. We have also been assured that the proposed investment summit will be held on a mutually agreed date,” the chief minister informed mediapersons here.
Sarma said the reason behind the cancellation has not been disclosed to the state government.
“I can only know the exact reason for the cancellation once I visit Delhi and meet external affairs minister S. Jaishankar,” he said, adding that he does not want to comment further without proper information.
Terming the development as disappointing, the chief minister said officials from the Japanese Embassy had been stationed in Guwahati for the past one month leading up to the proposed visit of the Prime Minister and monitoring every aspect of the preparations, including hotel arrangements, food and other logistical details.
He informed that a 50-member business delegation from Japan would have also visited the state had the proposed visit of the Japanese leader to Assam materialised.
“However, we will stay hopeful that the proposed investment summit, involving Japanese participation, will take place at a later date,” the chief minister said.
