Sympathy from foreign leaders rushed in shortly after Shinzo Abe was shot on Friday. But in China and South Korea, which bore the brunt of militarist Japan’s brutality in the first half of the 20th century, the reaction was more complicated.
China’s condolences to incumbent Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, as well as his personal sympathy to Abe’s family. Abe “contributed positively” to improving bilateral relations, he said, in a sober statement that stood in stark contrast to the mockery that has since been muffled on Chinese social media. A Chinese foreign ministry spokesman declined to comment on the online scorn.
Abe left a “mixed basket” of a legacy, said Victor Gao, a Beijing-based political commentator who served as an interpreter for former Chinese leader Deng Xiaoping. Gao praised Abe for having made his first official foreign trip as prime minister to Beijing and for trying to devise a foreign policy that was more independent of Washington. Despite the historical friction, the two economies are closely linked, and Japan is China’s third-largest source of foreign investment.
After leaving office in 2020, Abe became a particularly vocal critic of Beijing’s growing aggression in the Indo-Pacific region. He urged Washington to abandon its policy of strategic ambiguity toward Taiwan and commit to defending the self-governing island, which Beijing claims as part of China, in event of an attack. Abe also reportedly helped orchestrate a transfer of coronavirus vaccine doses from Tokyo to Taipei, at a time when Taiwan was facing a spike in infections.
South Africa Latest News, South Africa Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Abe Shinzo Spent His Last Days Advocating for Defending Taiwan from a Belligerent ChinaFormer Japanese Prime Minister Abe Shinzo spent much of his public effort in the months leading up to his assassination advocating for defending the nation of Taiwan from a potential Chinese invasion.
Read more »
Former Japanese leader Shinzo Abe reportedly shot while giving speechWitnesses reported hearing gunshots in the apparent attack in Nara, Japan.
Read more »
Former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe rushed to hospital after possible shooting, NHK reportsFormer Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has been rushed to hospital following a possible shooting during a speech in Nara, Japan, public broadcaster NHK reports.
Read more »
Japan ex-leader Shinzo Abe apparently shot, in heart failureNHK public television says Japan’s former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was in heart failure after apparently being shot during a campaign speech in western Japan.
Read more »
Former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe shot while giving campaign speechJapan's former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe collapsed bleeding and was in heart failure after apparently being shot during a campaign speech in western Japan, NHK public television said Friday.
Read more »