Ambassador Watanabe visited Romania and Croatia

In September 2004, Taizo Watanabe, Commissioner General of EXPO 2005 Aichi, Japan, visited two countries in Europe, Romania and Croatia, in response to the earnest requests of the two countries to take part in a communication campaign to raise public awareness of the Expo in respective country.

In Romania, Watanabe appeared on TV both on live and recorded programs to appeal directly to the public and elaborate on the importance of the Expo at the beginning of the 21st century. He also had discussions with high-ranking officials of the Romanian government through the introduction of Mr. Ferdinand Nagy, secretary of state and Commissioner General of the Romanian Section.

Next, Watanabe visited Croatia where he was also actively engaged in numerous interviews for TV, radio and newspapers. After making official visits to different ministries, he was accompanied by Mr. Ivica Maricic, Commissioner General of the Croatian Section, to the famous coastal city of Ston where a 4,000-year-old saltpan is still in operation. Watanabe noted how the natural surroundings of this region had given inspiration to the basic concept of the Croatian exhibit at the Expo: “A drop of water, a grain of salt.”