THE KINGDOM OF SAUDI ARABIA AND JAPAN ISSUED A JOINT COMMUNIQU FOLLOWING TALKS BETWEEN CROWN PRINCE SULTAN, DEPUTY PREMIER, MINISTER OF DEFENSE AND AVIATION AND INSPECTOR GENERAL, AND JAPAN'S PRIME MINISTER JUNICHIRO KOIZUMI IN TOKYO TODAY. CROWN PRINCE SULTAN IS CURRENTLY ON A STATE THREE-DAY VISIT TO JAPAN STARTING FROM WEDNESDAY AT AN INVITATION FROM KOIZUMI. CROWN PRINCE SULTAN WAS GIVEN A RED-CARPET WELCOME AT THE AIRPORT WHERE HE WAS RECEIVED BY JAPAN'S HEIR APPARENT NAROHITO AND BY EMPEROR AKIHITO AT THE ROYAL PALACE, AND HELD OFFICIAL ROUND OF TALKS WITH KOIZUMI EARLIER TODAY. FOLLOWING TODAY'S TALKS, THE TWO SIDES ISSUED THE FOLLOWING COMMUNIQU: THEY RECALLED PREVIOUS VISITS BY SENIOR SAUDI AND JAPANESE VISITS WHICH BOOSTED BILATERAL EXCHANGES BETWEEN THE TWO COUNTRIES. THEY SAID THE CELEBRATIONS MARKING THE 50TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE ESTABLISHMENT OF DIPLOMATIC RELATIONS BETWEEN THE TWO COUNTRIES CONSIDERABLY CONTRIBUTED TO ENHANCING BILATERAL RELATIONS. --MORE 23 04 LOCAL TIME 20 04 GMT
