WASHINGTON (AP) — Japan is giving the United States 250 new cherry trees to help replace hundreds that were uprooted this summer as construction crews work to repair the crumbling seawall around the capital’s tidal basin.
Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida made the announcement as President Joe Biden welcomed him to the White House on Wednesday for an official visit and state dinner. Biden said the gift was intended to mark the 250th anniversary of the United States in 2026, adding: “Like our friendship, these trees are timeless, inspiring and prosperous. »
In 1912, first lady Helen Herron Taft and Viscountess Chinda, wife of the Japanese ambassador to the United States, planted two Yoshino cherry trees on the north bank of the Potomac River Tidal Basin. They were among 3,000 such trees that Japan gifted to the United States as a symbol of friendship between the two countries.
The trees bloom in vibrant pinks and reds each spring and attract more than a million visitors to Washington. Aside from the aesthetics of the nation’s capital, the latest gift reflects the geopolitical alliance between Biden and Kishida as they discuss the delicate security situation in the Pacific. The state dinner is designed to celebrate one of Biden’s most powerful allies.
Senior administration officials noted on a call with reporters that arguably the two most important gifts foreign countries have given the United States are the Statue of Liberty — which came from the French and was dedicated in 1886 – and the Japanese cherry trees in Washington.
The Tidal Basin is a 107-acre man-made reservoir bordering the Jefferson Memorial and home to the highest concentration of cherry blossoms. Senior officials said that when the Japanese learned that some trees were going to be felled due to construction work, they immediately offered to provide saplings when the time came.
“I am confident that the cherry blossom bond of the Japan-US alliance will continue to grow even thicker and stronger, in the Indo-Pacific region and in every corner of the world,” Kishida said.
Biden, in his remarks, passed up the opportunity to mention Stumpy, the gnarled, hollow old cherry tree that stands on the south shore of the Tidal Basin. Stumpy is frequently submerged in floodwaters from the Potomac and has become a social media phenomenon. It is expected to be removed as part of a three-year, $133 million improvement project to rebuild and strengthen the seawall.
Biden said that he and his wife, Jill Biden, took a stroll on the White House lawn Tuesday evening with the Prime Minister and his wife, Yuko Kishida, to visit three cherry trees. One of them was planted by the first ladies last year and the other two are part of the new series of saplings.
“Every spring, cherry trees bloom in this city, thanks to a gift from Japan of 3,000 cherry trees more than a century ago,” Biden said. “People come from all over our country and around the world to see these beautiful flowers. »
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