Highest Honor Awaits Reagan in Japan Visit

Ronald and Nancy Reagan arrived here today on a visit for which the former President reportedly will receive $2 million, and the Japanese government said it will award him one of its highest honors.

The Reagans arrived on a chartered TWA Boeing 747 along with 229 U.S. military dependents they invited to hitch a ride to the Far East.

Reagan will receive the Grand Cordon of the Supreme Order of the Chrysanthemum for his “contribution to the maintenance and promotion of friendship between the United States and Japan,” said Foreign Ministry spokesman Taizo Watanabe.

“Mr. Reagan has always been clear in refusing protectionism and tried his best to maintain the free trade system,” Watanabe said.

The only other U.S. President to receive the honor was Dwight Eisenhower.

The Reagans are in Japan at the invitation of the Japanese government and the Fujisankei Communications Group. Fujisankei has refused to confirm reports Reagan will receive about $2 million for the visit, which it said will cost a total of about $7 million.

The Reagans descended hand-in-hand from their plane and were met by U.S. Ambassador Michael Armacost and Vice Foreign Minister Naoki Tanaka.

In short remarks on the Tarmac, Reagan said he was “delighted” to be back in Japan.

“I deeply valued the working relationships I had with Japanese leaders during my time in the White House,” he said. “Nancy and I have a special fondness for the Japanese people.”

The Reagans will attend several charity events and meet Prime Minister Toshiki Kaifu, Emperor Akihito and other government figures during the two-day official part of the visit.

The Reagans were whisked by helicopter from Tokyo to Fujisankei’s Hakone Open-Air Museum in the forested hills near Mt. Fuji where, after a brief welcoming ceremony, they were to spend this evening and Saturday resting.

It is Reagan’s first major excursion since he had surgery Sept. 8 to drain fluid from his brain after suffering a head injury in a horseback riding accident this summer.