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Yoko Maejima, the newly appointed deputy head of mission at the Embassy of Japan in Athens, shared the heartfelt message in a video published on the embassy\u2019s official Instagram account.<\/p>\n
Her words, \u201cI feel as though I have returned home\u201d, reflect a relationship with Greece that stretches back more than three decades.<\/p>\n
Maejima\u2019s connection with Greece began in the late 1980s, when she started learning the Greek language and spent time in Thessaloniki and Corfu.<\/p>\n
Read more: Japanese Diplomat Takaaki Nemoto Farewells Greece With Cavafy Verse in Greek<\/p>\n
Her professional career subsequently brought her to Athens, where she served as cultural attach\u00e9 at the Japanese Embassy between 1992 and 1995.<\/p>\n
She returned to Greece in 2013, taking up the position of first secretary and head of the embassy\u2019s Political Affairs Section. She remained in the role until 2021.<\/p>\n
From 2021 to 2025, Maejima served as deputy head of the Japanese Embassy in Cyprus, maintaining her professional ties with the wider Greek-speaking region.<\/p>\n
Her latest appointment brings her back to Athens, where she will have another opportunity to contribute to relations between Japan and Greece.<\/p>\n
Maejima\u2019s story highlights the role language and cultural understanding can play in building lasting relationships between countries.<\/p>\n
Her ability to communicate directly with Greeks in their own language, combined with her long professional history in the region, offers a personal dimension to her new diplomatic posting.<\/p>\n
\nHer return also comes as Greece and Japan continue to develop their longstanding friendship through diplomatic, cultural and economic cooperation.<\/p>\n
The embassy\u2019s video has provided a warm introduction to the Greek public, with Maejima making clear that her relationship with the country extends well beyond her official duties.<\/p>\n
Source: Embassy of Japan in Greece<\/p>\n
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