China’s Xi ‘deeply regrets’ death of Japan’s Abe

BEIJING (Reuters) – China’s President Xi Jinping expressed his condolences on Saturday over the dying of former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, whom Xi stated had labored onerous to enhance relations between the neighbours, Chinese language state media reported.

Japan’s longest serving trendy chief was gunned down on Friday within the Japanese metropolis of Nara whereas making a marketing campaign speech for a parliamentary election. A 41-year-old Japanese male suspect has been arrested.

“I deeply remorse his sudden dying,” state media quoted Xi as saying on behalf of the Chinese language authorities and other people in a message to Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida.

“I as soon as reached vital consensus with him on constructing China-Japan relations.”

Xi additionally prolonged his condolences to Abe’s household, state tv reported.

Ties between Japan and China have been plagued for years by a territorial dispute over a gaggle of tiny East China Sea islets in addition to the legacy of Japan’s previous army aggression.

However relations warmed whereas Abe’s was prime minister, significantly throughout his second time period from 2012 to 2020.

Abe made a uncommon state go to to China in 2018 and, in return, Xi was anticipated to go to Japan in 2020, which might have marked the primary journey by a Chinese language president to Japan since 2008.

However the plan was shelved due to the COVID-19 outbreak.

Bilateral ties have turn into extra advanced in current months, with Kishida’s authorities calling for elevated defence spending and expressing concern over threats confronted by self-ruled Taiwan, which China claims as its personal.

Kishida has additionally stated he was dissatisfied by efforts by China to develop areas within the East China Sea, saying it was “unacceptable”.

The dispute over the East China Sea islands, which Japan controls however China additionally claims, and the waters round them, has been a longtime supply of pressure between the world’s second- and third-biggest economies.

In his message to Kishida, Xi stated he was keen to work with him on creating pleasant and neighbourly ties.

(Reporting by Ryan Woo and Tina Qiao; Enhancing by Robert Birsel)