Japan reiterated its commitment to fulfilling the Palestinian legitimate aspiration for an independent Palestinian state, said a press release by the representative of Japan to PA Junya Matsuura on Thursday. The press release, which was issued on the occasion of the 79th birthday of the Emperor of Japan, confirmed  Japan’s support to the Palestinians to fulfill their aspiration for an independent, peaceful and prosperous state living side by side with Israel. Matsuura congratulated the Palestinians on the vote that upgraded Palestine to a non-member observer state at the United Nations General Assembly. He said, “I was also very pleased to hear, in the speech of President Mahmoud Abbas at UN, the Palestinians commitment to peace, international humanitarian law, democracy, civil liberties, rule of law and rights of women. The most important among them was the commitment to the two-state solution.”