Japan's Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko are visiting Canada and Hawaii during a two-week tour but they won't be going to Pearl Harbour.
There had been speculation in the Japanese media that they might go to Pearl Harbour, which would have been the first visit by a member of the Imperial Family to the scene of Japan's 1941 surprise attack.
But palace officials said the purpose of their visit, starting on Friday, is not related to the attack.
"Both Canada and the state of Hawaii are home to many people of Japanese ancestry," Akihito said in a statement ahead of the trip.
"We are looking forward to meeting these people in various places during our trip and further deepen our understanding of the paths they have taken to this day."
During their July 14-16 Hawaii visit, they will lay a wreath at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, the burial place for 34,000 veterans of World War I, World War II, the Korean War and the Vietnam War.
Before heading to Hawaii, the couple will spend 11 days in Canada.
Akihito's previous trip to Canada was in 1953, a year after Japan and Canada signed the peace treaty ending World War II hostility and the first time he ever travelled abroad.
He was crown prince then, 19 and single.
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