Abe’s Hawaii visit for 75th anniversary of Pearl Harbor made history

HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) – Former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s final journey to Hawaii in 2016, to mark the seventy fifth anniversary of the Pearl Harbor assault, was an vital and unprecedented go to that signified the power of U.S.-Japan relations and the way far the 2 nations have come since World Struggle II.

Abe, who was assassinated Friday, was Japan’s prime minister on the time of his go to to Pearl Harbor. Although he wasn’t the primary Japanese chief to go to the location, he was the primary to set foot on the memorial that catalogs the toll of the assault.

In a strong gesture of reconciliation, Abe joined then-President Barack Obama to put wreath on the USS Arizona Memorial and inform a gathered crowd that Japan “must not ever repeat the horrors of battle once more.”

Abe stopped in need of apologizing for the assault on Pearl Harbor throughout his go to however mentioned the go to was a chance to “soothe the souls of the victims.”

“Because the prime minister of Japan, I supply my honest and eternal condolences to the souls of those that misplaced their lives right here, in addition to to the spirits of all of the courageous women and men whose lives had been taken by a battle that commenced on this very place,” he mentioned, utilizing a translator.

His go to got here months after Obama traveled to Hiroshima to pay his respects to the hundreds who died there.

Obama on Friday wrote on Twitter that he was “shocked” and “saddened” by the dying of his buddy and longtime companion — and would always remember the work they did to strengthen U.S.-Japan ties.

Whereas on Oahu throughout that very same journey, Abe visited a memorial to those that died when a U.S. Navy submarine collided with a Japanese highschool fishing vessel Ehime Maru 15 years in the past. 9 boys and males died when the USS Greeneville rammed the fishing vessel off Oahu in February 2001.

U.S. Sen. Mazie Hirono additionally expressed her condolences, saying she is shocked and deeply saddened by his dying.

“As an immigrant born in Japan, I be a part of President Biden and stand with the Japanese individuals throughout this time,” she mentioned, in an announcement.

“We are going to honor Prime Minister Abe’s legacy by persevering with to work to strengthen our relationship with Japan, which is a crucial ally in defending the safety of the Indo-Pacific area and performs a significant position in Hawaii’s economic system and tradition.”

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