Shinzo Abe's widow thanks Taiwan for commemorating late husband

Kaohsiung, June 21 (CNA) Akie Abe, widow of the late former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, on Saturday expressed her gratitude to the people of Taiwan for keeping her husband's memory alive.

"I'm very grateful to see so many people commemorating my husband," Abe said during a visit to a temple in Kaohsiung dedicated to members of the Imperial Japanese Navy, where a bronze statue of Shinzo Abe was erected in 2020.

Accompanied by around 10 individuals, Abe laid a wreath at the statue during her second visit to the site. She said she was moved by how many people continue to visit the statue.

"You are always so welcoming every time I come here, with such a grand ritual. I'm truly thankful for all of this," she said.

Abe added it was unfortunate that her husband was unable to visit Taiwan while in office, but he had expressed his desire to do so after retirement.

Shinzo Abe, former president of the Liberal Democratic Party, was assassinated in July 2022. His two stints in office -- from 2006 to 2007 and from 2012 to 2020 -- make him Japan's longest-serving prime minister to date.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, he was unable to visit Taiwan after stepping down in 2020, Akie Abe said during her previous visit to the statue in July 2023.

"I'm sorry that he passed away before having the chance to come, but I believe his spirit remains with Taiwan, just as we do," she said, adding that she would continue to promote the statue after returning to Japan.

Earlier Saturday, Akie Abe attended the opening of the Tainan International Mango Festival at the invitation of Tainan Mayor Huang Wei-che (黃偉哲).

According to a post by President Lai Ching-te (賴清德) on the social media platform X, the president hosted a dinner for Akie Abe in Tainan on Friday, during which Abe presented Lai with a copy of her late husband's memoir.