Under Abe News Today

Yuki Tatsumi is Co-Director of East Asia Program and Director of the Japan Program at the Stimson Center in Washington, DC. She also serves as non-resident Senior Fellow at the Canon Institute for Global Studies in Tokyo.

Former Japanese prime minister Abe Shinzo's assassination at an election campaign event in Nara, Japan, is both shocking and puzzling. It is shocking because Japan has known almost no political violence for at least a half-century, and because gun ownership in the country is tightly controlled. It is puzzling because Abe, having stepped down as prime minister in 2020, had no formal government role; yet the killing was plainly a political act.

Former Japanese Prime Minister Abe Shinzo, who was assassinated in Japan while giving a speech outdoors last week, said that he personally respected Vietnam and had special affection for Vietnamese leaders.

LONDON  —  Former Japanese Prime Minister Abe Shinzō’s assassination at an election campaign event in Nara, Japan, is both shocking and puzzling. It is shocking because Japan has known almost no political violence for at least a half-century, and because gun ownership in the country is tightly controlled. It is puzzling because Abe, having stepped down as prime minister in

Japan has not experienced political violence for a half-century, which is why the assassination of former prime minister Shinzo Abe comes as such a shock. Perhaps not coincidentally, the last top politician to fall victim to a violent attack had also taken steps to strengthen the country’s mi...

“Japan must work to defend itself, and must maintain the power needed to prevent war from breaking out in the first place” ー Former PM Shinzo Abe.

Over a year since his resignation, Abe’s “power is substantial,” as is his legacy.

Even from retirement, former Prime Minister Abe Shinzo continues to cast a long shadow over Japan’s foreign policy.

17 February 2021 Author: Yuki Tatsumi, Stimson Center Japan’s 2021 defence budget is set to be its largest ever, continuing a near decade-long trend set in motion by former prime minister Shinzo Abe. Under Abe’s watch, Japan has increased its defence budget every year since 2005. The uptick in spending has continued since Abe left office in September 2020 — last December, the Ministry of Defense released its revised budget request for the 2021 fiscal year totalling approximately 5.3 trill...

Toggle open close Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga assumed the mantle of Japanese prime minister amidst growing regional security threats, continuing COVID-19 effects on public health and the economy, a critical financial situation, and lingering structural economic problems. Given the extent of these challenges, one wonders whether to offer Suga condolences rather than congratulations. Suga’s predecessor, Shinzo Abe, implemented a visionary foreign policy, strengthened Japan’s allian...