Other Countries
Other monarchies, such as the Netherlands (Prince's Day) and Norway, have very similar throne speech ceremonies.
In Japan, the Emperor makes only a short speech of greeting during the Diet opening ceremony; he does not refer to any government policies, instead allowing the prime minister to address political matters. Similarly, in Sweden, since the mid 1970s, the monarch, at the request of the Speaker of the Riksdag, gives a short symbolic address ending with the monarch declaring the annual session of the Riksdag (Swedish: Riksmötet) to be opened, and is immediately followed by the prime minister's statement of government agenda (Swedish: Regeringsförklaring) for the forthcoming legislative year.
In Thailand, the monarch makes a speech at a joint session in the Ananta Samakhom Throne Hall, advising the National Assembly in their work. Malaysia also has the same practice, with the Yang di-Pertuan Agong making such an address to the Parliament of Malaysia in joint session during its state opening yearly every March.
Many republics also hold a yearly event in which the president gives a speech to a joint session of the legislature, such as the State of the Union Address given by the President of the United States or the State of the Nation Address by the President of the Philippines. Often such are on or near the first day of the legislature's new session.
Read more about this topic: Speech From The Throne
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