Japan's Princess Masako is pregnant with a possible heir to the Chrysanthemum Throne, the world's oldest monarchy, after nearly eight years of marriage.
"She is in good condition, and if all goes well the baby will be born in late November or early December," the grand master of the crown princess's household, Kiyoshi Furukawa, told a rare live news conference on Tuesday.
"We would like everyone to continue to watch over her calmly."
If the royal baby is a boy, Japan will avoid a succession crisis in the imperial family, where no royal males have been born in more than three decades. Moves have been afoot to consider altering the nation's strict males-only succession statute to allow a female to inherit the throne.
The princess suffered a miscarriage in late 1999 after a highly publicized pregnancy sparked a media circus.
The media frenzy prompted heavy criticism and even Masako herself and her husband Crown Prince Naruhito had some harsh words about the coverage, which some critics said may have contributed to the miscarriage.
A male baby would be second in line to the throne after his father, Naruhito.
No royal males have been born since 1965, when the crown prince's younger brother, Prince Akishino, was born. Akishino's two children are girls.
New Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi welcomed the news.
"This is happy news. It's the first bright news in a long while," a smiling Koizumi told reporters. "This is what everyone has longed for and I am truly pleased."
Asked if royal doctors would do tests to find out the gender of the baby, Furukawa said it was not his place to comment, but added: "At this point we aren't considering it at all."
When asked, however, many Japanese said they hoped the baby would be male, guaranteeing the long-awaited heir.
"To tell you honestly, I think it may be better if the baby is a boy," said housewife Naoko Imai, 25, cuddling a baby in her arms – TOKYO (Reuters)
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