Hundreds of cherry trees will be ripped out of the Tidal Basin in Washington, D.C., this summer as construction begins on a crumbling seawall. However, Japan is stepping up to the plate to replace some of the trees lost in the removal process.
During a visit to the White House on Wednesday, April 10, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida announced that Japan would gift 250 cherry trees to the U.S. by 2026 to coincide with the United States’ 250th anniversary. The Biden administration said as soon as Kishida’s country learned of the removal of some trees, leaders offered to provide replacements.
The first Yoshino cherry trees were given to the U.S. by Japan in 1912. The 3,000 cherry trees were gifted as a symbol of friendship between the two countries.
Hundreds of thousands of tourists descend on the nation’s capital every spring to celebrate the National Cherry Blossom Festival, which generally takes place amid peak bloom of the trees.
The additional trees come as the bond between Washington and Tokyo deepens amid global conflicts, which could be seen when President Joe Biden commended Kishida’s support as an ally to Ukraine.
“When Russia began its brutal invasion of Ukraine two years ago, he did not hesitate to condemn, sanction and isolate Russia and provide billions in assistance to Ukraine,” Biden said.
Kishida’s visit also involves talks on the security situation in the Indo-Pacific region, as military tensions between Taiwan and China persist.
Biden has made it a point of his administration to focus on “leaders of the Quad,” which refers to the partnership between the U.S., Australia, India and Japan since he took his office. He called the bond between the U.S. and Japan “unbreakable.”
