VSUES received high awards from the Government of Japan

The President of VSUES, honorary citizen of Vladivostok Gennadii Lazarev became a knight of the Order of the Rising Sun; the director of the Museum and Exhibition Complex of VSUES Nadezhda Sukhareva was awarded a Certificate of Honor by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Japan. This is how the outstanding achievements of the staff of the VSUES in the development of Japanese-Russian relations, assistance in cultural exchanges and mutual understanding between Japan and Russia were noted.

The Consul General of Japan in Vladivostok, Mr. Yoshida Kensuke, held the solemn ceremony of awarding the order and diploma. The ceremony was attended by the Rector of VSUES Tatiana Terenteva, Chairman of the Vladivostok City Duma Andrey Brik, deputy of the Legislative Assembly of Primorsky Krai Igor Chemeris, Director of the Department of International and Cultural Activities of VSUES Peter Semin, teachers, students of VSUES, representatives of the Toyama – Vladivostok Friendship Society, the Japanese Center in Vladivostok, the Japanese tea ceremony club "Ichigo ICHIE", friends and relatives of the awardees.

"Two important awards are being presented on the territory of our consular district: the Order of the Rising Sun, Golden Rays with a neck Ribbon and the Certificate of Honor of the Minister of Foreign Affairs," Yoshida Kensuke, Consul General of Japan in Vladivostok, said in his speech. - It is noteworthy that both awards were awarded specifically to representatives of the VSUES. This is a clear proof of the university''s huge contribution to strengthening friendly relations with Japan.

The Consul General of Japan stressed that as President of the VSUES, Gennadii Lazarev actively developed contacts with universities and enterprises in Japan:

- Thanks to the efforts of Mr. Lazarev, many universities in Japan are now cooperating with VSUES. Among them are Toyama University, Tottori Prefectural University of the Environment, Japan University of Economics," said Yoshida Kensuke. - In addition, Mr. Lazarev supervised many cultural events, thereby making a significant contribution to the promotion and mutual understanding between our countries. Special thanks for the activities of Gennadii Lazarev as Chairman of the Vladivostok-Toyama Friendship Society. Under his leadership, a Japanese rock garden was laid out, which is called the Toyama - Vladivostok Friendship Garden. In addition, after the great earthquake in eastern Japan in 2011, on the initiative of Mr. Lazarev, a project was organized – "Vladivostok prays for Japan". In support of the victims of the earthquake, we received warm words from Gennady Lazarev about his readiness to provide maximum assistance to the victims and their family members, the students of VSUES organized a fundraiser, which was then sent to Japan. The Government of Japan and the Japanese people are deeply grateful for the helping hand of our country, which at that time was in a national crisis. Gennady Lazarev, I congratulate you sincerely on the well-deserved receipt of the order, I would like to ask you to continue cooperation with the Japanese side aimed at further development of relations between our countries.

Gennadii Lazarev, in turn, expressed gratitude to the Emperor of Japan Naruhito and the Government of Japan for awarding the high Order.

Awarding the Director of the VSUES Museum and Exhibition Complex with the Certificate of Honor of the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Japan, Consul General of Japan in Vladivostok Yoshida Kensuke emphasized the achievements of Nadezhda Sukhareva:

– This is the strengthening of mutual understanding between Japan and Russia, through cultural exchanges between our countries and familiarization cultural programs for Russian citizens. The VSUES Museum and Exhibition Complex, headed by Nadezhda Sukhareva, often holds exhibitions of Japanese art and provides great support in organizing cultural events held by our consulate, for which I take this opportunity to express my gratitude to her. During the events, the VSUES cooperates with other Japanese organizations. One example is the holding of calligraphy courses. Just the work hanging on this wall was painted during the demonstration of the Jun calligraphy community; it is very popular among the guests of the residence. In addition, this complex provides its halls to the local tea ceremony club, so now it is an iconic place for fans of the tea ceremony, as well as an important platform for the dissemination of Japanese culture.

Reference:

The Order of the Rising Sun is the third most important Japanese award, after the Order of the Chrysanthemum and the Order of the Flowers of Pavlonia. The Orders of the Rising Sun on behalf of the Emperor of Japan are awarded to foreign citizens who have outstanding achievements in the development of friendship with Japan and in other areas. For the history of Japanese-Russian relations, six Primorye residents have been awarded this award.