Princess Mako of Japan, still willing to renounce royal rights to marry a commoner

Princess Mako of Japan, who had announced her engagement to commoner Kei Komuro in 2017, is still hoping to marry him even after nearly four years of waiting.

The wedding was originally scheduled to take place in November 2018, but the Imperial Household Agency later announced that it would be postponed until 2020 due to some financial dispute on the end of the groom-to-be, Kei Komuro and his family, which the royal family disapproves.

In an update on the situation in November 2020, the household revealed that there was still no anticipated date for the marriage, as the financial feud still remains unresolved. Komuro has opened up about the legal troubles hindering his wedding plans in a new report, while confirming that the date of his nuptials with the Princess is still uncertain, reports Royal Central.

In a recently-released document, Komuro explained that the financial issues are between his mother and her former fiancé, which they believed to have been resolved when the man said he did not want to be paid back the money he gave to Komuro's mother for his education among other things. However, the man sent Komuro a letter the next year demanding that they repay the debt.

The two sides couldn't come to any agreement, and fresh efforts to make an arrangement following Mako and Komuro's engagement also "broke down" between May 2019 and November 2020.

Komuro says he is grateful for the support given to him by the plaintiff and admits that his family relies too much on him. He also noted that despite waiting for all these years, he and Princess Mako still love one another and want to wed.

Crown Prince Fumihito and Crown Princess Kiko of Japan, parents of Princess Mako, have also been made aware of Komuro's recent confession and they are appreciative of his efforts regarding the financial situation, as stated by a senior official in the household.

Princess Mako also knew beforehand that her partner was going to release the documents and already had a discussion with his family about it. Her opinion was also taken into consideration by the family as they dealt with the issue, including the suggestion that they engage in some dialogue instead of repaying the money without proper discussions.

"I would appreciate if people could understand there were various circumstances (behind the dispute) by reading the document," the Princess said about the matter through a statement released by the Imperial Household Agency.

Upon her wedding to Komuro, the 29-year-old will become the ninth female member of the Japenese royal family to marry a commoner since the passage of the Imperial Household Law of 1947, which dictates that women who marry commoners must leave the imperial family.