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Beijing grapples with Shinzo Abe’s mixed legacy on China-Japan relations after former prime minister is shot dead
- Abe is seen as working to improve relations during his two terms in office, but his recent comments on Taiwan had angered Beijing
- Chinese officials express sympathy after he was shot dead, but some social media sites are forced to turn off their comments
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Chinese officials have expressed their condolences following the assassination of the former Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe – but the reaction from social media users was far more mixed, reflecting the up-and-down relationship between the two countries during his terms in office.
Hashtags about the shooting became the hottest topic on Chinese social media on Friday but some platforms closed comments to avoid controversy over Abe’s visits to a shrine honouring Japan’s war dead, including convicted war criminals.
Chinese government officials expressed their shock and expressed sympathy for the longest serving post-war Japanese prime minister.
“Former prime minister Abe contributed to the improvement and development of China-Japan relations during his tenure in office. We express our condolences on his passing and our condolences to his family,” a spokesman for the Chinese embassy in Japan said in a statement.
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Former Japanese PM Shinzo Abe dies at age 67 after being shot at a campaign event
Former Japanese PM Shinzo Abe dies at age 67 after being shot at a campaign event
Abe, 67, served two separate terms in the top job, including a near eight-year run from 2012 to 2020 – the longest uninterrupted stint in power for a Japanese leader in the post-war era.
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