Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe announced on Friday that he had decided to resign from the leadership role for health reasons.
Here is what some international leaders and businesspeople are saying about Abe:
New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern
"Prime Minister Abe struck me as a person of great integrity. He has led by example and showed what hard work, passion, and care for others can achieve," Ardern said in a statement.
"There is much Japan and New Zealand see eye to eye on. Our shared commitment to democracy and the rules-based international system makes Japan an important partner for New Zealand, especially in the Indo-Pacific region where we share common goals."
(Read Jacinda Ardern's full statement below).
US President Donald Trump
"I want to pay my highest respect to Prime Minister Shinzo Abe ... a great friend of mine," Trump told reporters on Air Force One. "I just feel very badly about it."
Trump said Abe loved his country very much, adding that he planned to call the Japanese leader.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian
"In recent years, the relationship between China and Japan has returned to the right track and achieved new developments… We express a positive assessment of the important efforts made by Prime Minister Abe to achieve these ends and at the same time wish him a speedy recovery."
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson
"Shinzo Abe has achieved great things as PM of Japan - for his country and the world," Johnson said on Twitter.
"Under his stewardship the UK-Japan relationship has gone from strength to strength in trade, defence and our cultural links. Thank you for all your years of service and I wish you good health."
German Chancellor Angela Merkell
"I regret his resignation and wish him all the very best, Merkel told reporters. "We worked very well together."
Russia
The Kremlin regrets that Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has decided to step down, spokesman Dmitry Peskov said, describing the working relations between Abe and President Vladimir Putin as "brilliant".
Taiwan President Tsai Ing-Wen
"Prime Minister Abe was always friendly to Taiwan, whether on policy or the rights and interests of Taiwan's people he was extremely positive. We value his friendly feelings towards Taiwan and hope he is healthy."
South Korea Presidential Blue House spokesman Kang Min-Seok
"We regret the sudden resignation announcement of Prime Minister Abe, who has left many meaningful achievements as Japan's longest-serving Prime Minister, and has also especially played a large role for development in South Korea and Japan's bilateral relations.
"We wish the Prime Minister a quick recovery. Our government will continue cooperation with the new Prime Minister and the new cabinet for improved ties with Japan."
Kwong Tae-Shin, vice chairman of the Federation of Korean Industries, a South Korea business lobby group
"President Moon Jae-in and Abe do not have good personal relationship, which contributed to adverse bilateral ties. When a new leader takes office in Japan, he can give momentum to improving bilateral relations. The two countries acknowledge that unnecessary diplomatic and trade conflicts would not help each other at a time when COVID-19 further adds difficulty to trade and business activities globally."
Marcus Schurmann, chief executive of the German Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Japan
"He did a lot of good with regards just to the fact that he was one of the key promoters for multilateralism and free trade and did a lot to move to Japan back onto the world stage. Japan recovered the visibility and recognition the third-largest economy in the world deserves.
"We have FTAs and he also tackled a lot of difficult problems. Just thinking about relations with China, relations also with Russia, and also the difficult relationship with the US at least since Trump came into power.
"I do not want to say he failed, but at least what is an unsolved problem is the relationship was Korea. I think that's the kind of problem which his successor has to work on.
He succeeded in bringing the Olympics to Tokyo. I think this is also a major achievement we should not forget."
Ardern's full statement:
"Prime Minister Abe has made his mark in many ways. In particular, I am very grateful for his personal commitment to further strengthening the Strategic Cooperative Partnership between our countries over the course of his leadership," Jacinda Ardern said.
"I was fortunate enough to visit Japan last year, and during my summit meeting with Prime Minister Abe we discussed the deepening relationship between our countries. I also thanked Prime Minster Abe for his leadership on CPTPP, which was of enormous benefit for economies in the region, and has also brought our two countries even closer.
"Prime Minister Abe struck me as a person of great integrity. He has led by example and showed what hard work, passion, and care for others can achieve.
"Japan is one of New Zealand's closest friends in the region. Many New Zealanders have connections to Japan – through learning Japanese or hosting Japanese students, as I did as a high school student - or through spending time in Japan for study, work or sports exchanges.
"There is much Japan and New Zealand see eye to eye on. Our shared commitment to democracy and the rules-based international system makes Japan an important partner for New Zealand, especially in the Indo-Pacific region where we share common goals.
"In a challenging global and regional environment, Prime Minister Abe's personal leadership and Free and Open Indo-Pacific vision has been important in upholding the values that New Zealand and Japan share.
"I would like to thank Prime Minister Abe for all he has done for Japan, the region, and New Zealand, and I acknowledge him for what he has done. I wish him all the best," Jacinda Ardern said.
Reuters
