Japan's Empress Michiko celebrates 73rd birthday

Japan's Empress Michiko

TOKYO, Saturday, AP - Japan's Empress Michiko marked her 73rd birthday today by saying she wanted to quietly focus on supporting her daughter-in-law Crown Princess Masako who is recuperating from depression. Masako, 43, withdrew from most of her public duties four years ago with stress-induced depression.

''Now that she seems to be on her way to recovery, which for me is such a joy, I would simply like to continue praying for the full recovery of the Crown Princess, and intend to watch quietly over her and the Crown Prince and give them all my support,'' Michiko said in a statement released for her birthday.

Along with the rigors of adjusting to royal life, Masako, a former diplomat and Harvard graduate, was also under pressure to produce a male heir to succeed Crown Prince Naruhito, the eldest son of Emperor Akihito. The couple has a daughter, Aiko, 5.

Michiko expressed her joy of interacting with her grandchildren as they grow up ''splendidly.'' She has three other grandchildren _ two teenage princesses and a 1-year-old prince _ from her second son Prince Akishino and his wife Kiko.