BEIJING: President of China Xi Jinping on Saturday conveyed condolences to Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida on the passing of Shinzo Abe, Japanwas the longest serving prime minister and praised his active contributions in improving Sino-Japanese relations.
AbeThe 67-year-old died Friday morning after being shot in the back during an election campaign speech near a train station in western Nara Prefecture.
Official media reported on Saturday, Mr. Xi offered his condolences for Prime Minister Abe’s sudden and unfortunate passing on behalf of the Chinese government and people as well as himself, and expressed sympathy for Prime Minister Abe’s family.
He said that Abe had made efforts to improve China-Japan relations while he was in office and actively contributed to this effort, adding that he had reached important mutual understanding with the former leader. Japan on building China-Japan relations to meet the needs of the new era.
Mr. Xi noted that he was willing to work with Kishida to further develop the China-Japan good-neighborly relationship, friendship and cooperation in accordance with the principles of the four Chinese political documents– Japan.
Mr. Xi and his wife, Peng Liyuan, also offered condolences to Abe’s widow, Akie Abe, the state-run China Daily reported.
“China is shocked” by Abe’s sudden death, Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian said on Friday, condoning the passing of the former prime minister.
Zhao said Abe has contributed to the improvement and development of China-Japan relations.
Separated by the East China Sea, part of the Western Pacific, China and Japan share a difficult relationship throughout their long histories.
Historically, they participated in two bitter wars – the first Sino-Japanese war, 1894-95 and the second in 1934-45, during the Second World War.
It was called the Asian Massacre because millions of Chinese civilians were killed.
The second war resulted in the Nanjing Massacre which left thousands of Chinese dead. Nanjing is a city in eastern China.
In recent years, relations have become difficult due to China’s expansive claims to the Senkaku Islands, which Beijing calls the Diaoyu Islands in the East China Sea.
But at the same time, Japan remains the most preferred tourist destination for the millions of Chinese who visit Japanese cities every year.
Initially, Abe pushed for a policy of improving relations with China and met with President Xi Jinping in 2014 during a visit to Beijing for the APEC summit, followed again in 2019 at the summit. G20 summit in Osaka, Japan.
But he later became a vocal critic of China, urging Beijing to avoid antagonizing other countries and stop demanding more territory from its neighbours.
Abe also strengthens strategic partnerships with India, Vietnam and other regional powers as well as the EU and the UK, while upgrading Japan’s own defense capabilities.
Abe is one of the architects of the Quad, the US, India, Japan and Australia alliance aimed at countering China’s growing influence and military might.
AbeThe 67-year-old died Friday morning after being shot in the back during an election campaign speech near a train station in western Nara Prefecture.
Official media reported on Saturday, Mr. Xi offered his condolences for Prime Minister Abe’s sudden and unfortunate passing on behalf of the Chinese government and people as well as himself, and expressed sympathy for Prime Minister Abe’s family.
He said that Abe had made efforts to improve China-Japan relations while he was in office and actively contributed to this effort, adding that he had reached important mutual understanding with the former leader. Japan on building China-Japan relations to meet the needs of the new era.
Mr. Xi noted that he was willing to work with Kishida to further develop the China-Japan good-neighborly relationship, friendship and cooperation in accordance with the principles of the four Chinese political documents– Japan.
Mr. Xi and his wife, Peng Liyuan, also offered condolences to Abe’s widow, Akie Abe, the state-run China Daily reported.
“China is shocked” by Abe’s sudden death, Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian said on Friday, condoning the passing of the former prime minister.
Zhao said Abe has contributed to the improvement and development of China-Japan relations.
Separated by the East China Sea, part of the Western Pacific, China and Japan share a difficult relationship throughout their long histories.
Historically, they participated in two bitter wars – the first Sino-Japanese war, 1894-95 and the second in 1934-45, during the Second World War.
It was called the Asian Massacre because millions of Chinese civilians were killed.
The second war resulted in the Nanjing Massacre which left thousands of Chinese dead. Nanjing is a city in eastern China.
In recent years, relations have become difficult due to China’s expansive claims to the Senkaku Islands, which Beijing calls the Diaoyu Islands in the East China Sea.
But at the same time, Japan remains the most preferred tourist destination for the millions of Chinese who visit Japanese cities every year.
Initially, Abe pushed for a policy of improving relations with China and met with President Xi Jinping in 2014 during a visit to Beijing for the APEC summit, followed again in 2019 at the summit. G20 summit in Osaka, Japan.
But he later became a vocal critic of China, urging Beijing to avoid antagonizing other countries and stop demanding more territory from its neighbours.
Abe also strengthens strategic partnerships with India, Vietnam and other regional powers as well as the EU and the UK, while upgrading Japan’s own defense capabilities.
Abe is one of the architects of the Quad, the US, India, Japan and Australia alliance aimed at countering China’s growing influence and military might.
