Condemning the assassination of former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and honoring his life and legacy.

Whereas Shinzo Abe, a towering figure of Japan, was horrifically assassinated on July 8, 2022, in the Japanese city of Nara while delivering a campaign speech as part of Japan’s electoral democracy; Whereas the late former Prime Minister of Japan was born on September 21, 1954, in Tokyo, Japan, the child of Yoko Abe and Shintaro Abe, and grew up in Tokyo; Whereas Shinzo Abe graduated from Seikei University in Tokyo in 1977, and studied political science at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles; Whereas, after returning to Japan, Shinzo Abe won a seat in the lower house of the Japanese Parliament in 1993 and was appointed Chief Cabinet Secretary in 2005, before becoming Prime Minister in 2006; Whereas September 20, 2006, Shinzo Abe was elected as President of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and on September 26, 2006, was inaugurated as Prime Minister of Japan for the first time; Whereas Shinzo Abe regained leadership of the LDP on September 26, 2012, and was reelected as Prime Minister for a second time on December 26, 2012; Whereas on December 24, 2014, Shinzo Abe was re-elected as Prime Minister for a third term; Whereas on November 1, 2017, Shinzo Abe was re-elected as Prime Minister for a fourth term; Whereas Shinzo Abe was the longest serving Prime Minister of post-World War II Japan and leader of the LDP, holding those offices for more than 8 years; Whereas Shinzo Abe was a stalwart champion of the United States-Japan alliance; Whereas Shinzo Abe, in his capacity as Prime Minister, visited the United States more than ten times to help strengthen the relationship; Whereas, as Prime Minister, Shinzo Abe promoted peace, security, and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific region and around the world; Whereas Shinzo Abe supported the United States in many shared challenges, including by sanctioning North Korea for nuclear testing, bolstering multilateral cooperation with Taiwan, providing logistics support for international peacekeeping missions, and conducting disaster relief through Japan’s Self Defense Forces; Whereas Shinzo Abe is widely credited with creating the vision of a “Free and Open Indo-Pacific”, linking the like-minded democracies of the Indian and Pacific Oceans to work together to advance prosperity and security, a framework that the United States and other countries adopted as a shared concept; Whereas Shinzo Abe raised Japan’s global stature through new partnerships and diplomatic initiatives in Asia, the Middle East, Europe, and beyond; Whereas Shinzo Abe advanced regional economic integration and shared prosperity in the Indo-Pacific region through numerous economic initiatives; Whereas Shinzo Abe bolstered the relationship between the United States, Japan, Australia and India by initiating the Quadrilateral grouping and championing the Quad Whereas Shinzo Abe led a pivotal improvement in Japan’s relations with Taiwan, describing Taiwan as “an important partner and a precious friend of Japan”, and taking up a leadership role in multilateral cooperation with Taiwan by cosponsoring the Global Cooperation and Training Framework; Whereas, on April 29, 2015, Shinzo Abe became the first and only Japanese Prime Minister to address a joint meeting of the United States Congress; Whereas, in his address to the joint meeting of the United States Congress, Shinzo Abe described how the United States and Japan, “Enemies that fought each other so fiercely have become friends bonded in spirit” calling it “a miracle of history”; Whereas Shinzo Abe made lasting and historic contributions to Japan’s security policy, including the 2014 reinterpretation of Japan’s constitution to allow participation in collective self-defense, and the 2017 decision to move Japan’s defense spending beyond the traditional limit of 1 percent of gross domestic product; Whereas Shinzo Abe made it his priority to revitalize the Japanese economy, spur growth, and make it more resilient to shocks through his economic policies, known as Abenomics Whereas Shinzo Abe championed the concept of “Womenomics” to include and elevate more Japanese women in the workforce and to provide a place where “women could shine”; Whereas, under Shinzo Abe’s leadership, the United States and Japan completed a major update of the United States-Japan bilateral defense guidelines to accelerate security cooperation; Whereas Shinzo Abe symbolically embraced the accomplishment of United States-Japan reconciliation by visiting Pearl Harbor with former President Barack Obama and joined former President Obama in Hiroshima; Whereas Shinzo Abe became the first head of state to meet then-President-elect Donald Trump in November 2016, and went on to have more conversations with President Trump than any other foreign leader; Whereas Shinzo Abe received numerous honors and awards over the course of his long and distinguished career, including the Legion of Merit award from the United States in 2020 and Japan’s highest honor, the Collar of the Supreme Order of the Chrysanthemum, which was awarded posthumously; and Whereas Shinzo Abe leaves behind a legacy of democratic service, sacrifice, and national pride: Now, therefore, be it That the House of Representatives— (1) condemns the heinous assassination of former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in the strongest possible terms; (2) extends its deepest sympathy and condolences to the family of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and to all the people of Japan in this moment time of tragedy; (3) honors the life and legacy of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe for his commitment to— (A) strengthening the United States-Japan alliance; (B) safeguarding global peace and security; and (C) advancing a vision for a free and open Indo-Pacific region; and (4) proclaims that— (A) Shinzo Abe served the people of Japan continually for nearly 40 years with an unwavering love for his country; (B) Shinzo Abe was instrumental in shaping modern Japan and has left a clear mark on Japan’s future; and (C) the United States will honor the legacy of Shinzo Abe with a renewed and redoubled commitment to the United States-Japan alliance.

Summary: This resolution condemns the assassination of former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, extends condolences to the family of former Prime Minister Abe and the people of Japan, honors the life and legacy of former Prime Minister Abe, and calls for a renewed commitment to the U.S.-Japan alliance.