A US conservative news website says Donald Trump is considering attending former Japanese Prime Minister Abe Shinzo’s funeral.
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Who was Shinzo Abe?
Mr. Shinzo Abe,67, was a Japanese politician who served as Prime Minister of Japan and President of the Liberal Democratic Party from 2006 to 2007 and from 2012 to 2020. He was shot in broad daylight while making a speech ahead of Japan’s Upper House elections on Sunday. The incident left the people of Japan awestruck, given Japan’s strict gun laws and extremely low rate of gun violence in the country.
Former President Donald Trump is in talks with the late former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s family about attending his funeral in the wake of his assassination. There has been no official confirmation from Trump’s office.
What relationship Donald Trump and Shinzo Abe shared ?
Mr. Trump, who shared a close relationship with Mr. Abe, recalled him being the first world leader he met while he was president. He said Abe’s death was bad news for the entire world reporting about Abe’s death.
“We’re going to see how it goes. We’re talking to their family. We love the family. His wife is a phenomenal woman. He is so loved in Japan; I can imagine that it is going to be an incredible celebration of life. He was just very special. Every aspect of that man was just very special,” Trump was quoted as saying by a news channel.
Mr. Trump added that Mr. Abe came to the United States right after the 2016 election and said they had “a special relationship.” “His killer was captured and will hopefully be dealt with swiftly and harshly,” Trump wrote on his social media platform
Trump opened his speech at a Friday night rally in Las Vegas by paying tribute to Abe. “Before we begin, I’d like to express my profound condolences to the family of a great, great man: Shinzo Abe,” Trump said. “He was an amazing leader; I knew him well. Tough negotiator, we could use a negotiator like that in our country because it’s not working out.”
“This was a man of tremendous moral code… just a fantastic person,” he added. “Prime Minister Abe was a friend of mine, an ally, and an incredible patriot.”, Trump said in another interview.
Did Shinzo Abe provoke his assassinator to commit the crime?
Abe was assassinated by Tetsuya Yamagami on July 8 when he was addressing a campaign rally for the Upper House elections in Japan at the Yamato-Saidaiji Station in Nara City.
Later on, Yamagami expressed that he did not oppose the political ideologies of Shinzo Abe but was provoked that the longest-serving prime minister supported a religious group that allegedly deceived his mother. “I was dissatisfied with former Prime Minister Abe and aimed to kill him. It is not a grudge against the former Prime Minister’s political beliefs,” Tetsuya said in an interview.
Who is Tetsuya Yamagami?
Born in Mie Prefecture, Tetsuya Yamagami offered service in Japan’s Maritime Self-Defense Force. Yamagami had no prior criminal history.
He used a handmade gun and fired two shots at Abe, who was delivering a speech. Yamagami did not try to escape or run at all and remains in police custody. Police are probing the case, but weapons experts believe he trained himself using DIY
All about the Former Japanese Prime Minister’s formal funeral
Abe’s body returned to his family home in Tokyo on Saturday afternoon accompanied by his wife, Akie, where the cortege was met by Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and senior members of his government. The government has confirmed that the funeral will include very few family members and close friends only, although an area has been set aside at the temple for members of the public to light incense sticks, lay flowers, and pay their respects.
A second ceremony is due to take place on Tuesday for Abe’s political colleagues. According to an article, the two powerful men shared dozens of phone calls, several visits to each other’s countries, and played golf several times together. This justifies Trump’s wish to attend Abe’s funeral.
