World lost a great visionary, I lost a dear friend: PM Modi remembers Abe

TIL Desk/National/New Delhi/ Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday called former Japan Prime Minister Shinzo Abe an outstanding leader of Japan and said that the world has lost a great visionary while he has lost a dear friend.

Remembering Abe, Modi wrote in a blog that he first met Abe in 2007, during his visit to Japan as the Chief Minister of Gujarat and right from that first meeting their friendship went beyond the trappings of office and the shackles of official protocol.

Recalling his interaction with Abe, Prime Minister Modi wrote: “Our visit to Toji temple in Kyoto, our train journey on the Shinkansen, our visit to the Sabarmati Ashram in Ahmedabad, the Ganga Aarati in Kashi, the elaborate tea ceremony in Tokyo, the list of our memorable interactions is indeed long.”

Prime Minister Modi said he will always cherish the singular honour of having been invited to Abe’s family home in Yamanashi prefecture, nestled among the foothills of Mt. Fuji.

“Even when he was not the Prime Minister of Japan between 2007 and 2012, and more recently after 2020, our personal bond remained as strong as ever. Every meeting with Abe San was intellectually stimulating. He was always full of new ideas and invaluable insights on governance, economy, culture, foreign policy, and various other subjects,” Prime Minister Modi wrote.