Japan’s Takaichi Pays Tribute to Abe 4 Years after Assassination

Tokyo, July 8 (Jiji Press)–Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi paid tribute to her late predecessor, Shinzo Abe, whom she sees as her mentor, on Wednesday, exactly four years after his assassination. “I will never forget that day for the rest of my life. Even now, my heart still breaks whenever I think about that time,” Takaichi said in a post on X. Takaichi said she “has truly felt the significance of the contributions Prime Minister Abe made to Japan and its people” while visiting various countries after taking office in October last year. “I’d like to remember and honor Abe’s legacy together with people in Japan and around the world,” she said. Abe was shot dead while delivering a campaign speech in Nara, a city in western Japan, on July 8, 2022. At a press conference, Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara said, “I’d like to pay my respects to Abe’s immense contributions and express my heartfelt condolences.” Despicable acts of violence, such as that committed against Abe, can “never be tolerated,” Kihara said. He said that the Takaichi administration will carry on the core of Abe’s diplomatic and economic policies, including an effort to promote a free and open Indo-Pacific as well as Abenomics. The Takaichi administration will “break away from the longstanding practices of excessive fiscal austerity and underinvestment in the future in order to achieve Japan’s growth,” Kihara said. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]