Shinzo Abe, A Great Friend of India

An assassination in the most unexpected countries of the world has stunned not only the native residents but sent shock waves across the globe. The former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was assassinated during a political campaign ahead of the elections for the Upper House in the city of Nara. Considered a safe country with the lowest crime rates a violent attack on their longest-serving Prime Minister, the country was shaken.

Abe is among the most consequential global statesman, who has reshaped the geopolitical contours of the Indo-Pacific region. Ahead of the times, discerning the much-touted peaceful rise of China is everything but peaceful, expounded a vision, “Confluence of Two Seas” while addressing the Indian Parliament in 2007. Conceptualising a ‘broader Asia’ which is free and open, enriched by the dynamic coupling of freedom and prosperity of the Pacific and the Indian Oceans, he proposed an immense network spanning the entire region comprising four democracies that would foster co-existence and transparency. This idea soon evolved into the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue with Japan, India, Australia, and the US as partners marking the genesis of the Indo-Pacific as a geopolitical construct.

Abe’s intuitive vision stems from the horrors of the war which imperial Japan underwent. Post-World War II, Japan vowed to never wage a war and created a free and democratic country, and resolved to uphold the rule of law. Bound by a Pacifist Constitution, creating a security net has been a vital necessity. Growing threats from the nuclear North Korea, historical animosities with South Korea and territorial disputes with China have prompted Abe to partner with a democratic India, which shares the same values, interests and threats.

The friendly relations between India and Japan touched new heights under the leadership of Modi and Abe. Both leaders, avowed nationalists, mindful of the Chinese aggression have fortified the relationship by adding new layers of cooperation. Saying, “strong India is in the best interest of Japan and strong Japan is in the best interest of India” and cognizant of India’s developmental challenges, Abe promoted investments in India and making an exception pursued a civil nuclear agreement. Consenting to the transfer of Shinkansen Technology, Abe played a pivotal role in realizing India’s dream of bullet trains. Together, Modi and Abe laid the foundation for the Mumbai-Ahmedabad High-Speed Rail (MAHSR) in 2017 giving a massive fillip to India’s infrastructure development aspirations.

The exceptional camaraderie and personal chemistry between Modi and Abe indeed steered Indo-Japanese ties to new heights. An element of inviolable trust eventually led to Japan under Abe’s leadership becoming a development partner of India in the insurgent-infested North East region. Committed to development and prosperity, India and Japan launched Asia Africa Growth Corridor, and jointly collaborated on developmental projects in Bangladesh and Sri Lanka.

Abe-Modi eventually scripted a new chapter in the bilateral ties through “personal diplomacy” which wasn’t just limited to warm hugs and effusive smiles. The exceptional bonhomie of the leaders and their reverence towards each other cultures have inadvertently brought the people of both countries together. Abe’s devoted presence at the Ganga Aarti, visit to Sabarmati Ashram and his enthusiastic appreciation of hospitality extended in Ahmedabad welcoming him- all these public events have left an indelible impression on the minds of Indians.

Abe’s Japan stood with India during the Doklam stand-off and the current logjam across the LAC. In recognition of his contributions in fostering India-Japan ties, India has bestowed Padma Vibhushan on Abe in 2021. A consequential leader, Abe realised the need to cultivate strong ties with like-minded countries and strived to establish a stable framework and architecture for a stable, secure, peaceful and prosperous Indo-Pacific. The Indo-Pacific concept is now widely popular and many countries have devised Indo-Pacific strategies to counter expansionist China. To further the India-Japan friendship, in May Abe took over as the chair of the India-Japan Association. With his death, India will miss a great friend in Abe.

To overcome compulsions of self-imposed pacificism, Abe adopted a transformative approach to Japan’s security.  When Abe first assumed charge in 2006, Japan didn’t have a defence ministry. He upgraded the Defence Agency to Defence Ministry and envisioned alternative ways to fortify the country’s defenses.

In response to dramatic changes in the regional power balance, during his second term rapidly introduced some fundamental changes. Dubbed as “Abe Doctrine”, he planned to amend Article 9 of the constitution, established the National Security Council, revised the National Security Strategy, updated the National Defence Program Guidelines and the Medium-Term Defense program.

JapanIn 2014, he lifted the arms export and established an Acquisition, Technology and Logistics Agency (ATLA) to handle defence procurement, research and development. In 2015, he adopted the Legislation for Peace and security to exercise the right to collective self-defense. He also attempted to normalise relations with Russia to find a mutually accepted solution for the lingering territorial disputes¹.

While Abe’s emphasis on the security aspect was remarkable, his pursuits to revive the economy- ‘Abenomics’ have been moderately successful in stabilizing the Japanese economy. After America’s pulled out from the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), amid the emergence of the China-dominated, RCEP (Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership) Abe revamped and rescued the trade agreement and steered the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTTP).

Abe presciently forewarned the world of China’s rise and strongly advocated the need for a rules-based international order. Though Abe resigned for the second time as Prime Minister in 2020 due to health problems, during a lecture in December, he said, “an increasingly powerful China toward Japan and Taiwan were likely to become more complex blurring the line between war and peace”².

Being a visionary statesman with deep insights into the geopolitical realities, he engaged with southeast Asian countries, Middle East, and African countries and favored bilateral, quadrilateral or multilateral strategic coalitions for specific issues.

Abe successfully revived ties with many countries. But his outreach to South Korea was marred by controversies- ‘comfort women’, reparations and ‘forced labour’. Abe’s visit to Yakusune Shrine in 2013, stirred up historical hostilities. Though he tried to make it up by offering condolences on the 70^th anniversary of the end of World War II, falling short of an apology, the gesture was deemed insensitive.  On the other hand, Abe’s act of reconciliation through a visit to Pearl Harbour on the 75^th anniversary of the attacks rejuvenated Japan-US relations.

Abe is one of the most strategically aware leaders who persistently cautioned of China’s belligerence and its imminent threat to the peace and security of the Indo-Pacific region. No wonder, while the world mourned the demise of Abe, Chinese social media gleefully celebrated.

Born in a political family, Shinzo Abe was the youngest and longest-serving Prime Minister of Japan. As a leader of Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), he led the party to landslide victories in 2012, 2014, and 2017. Labelled as an ‘Ultra Nationalist’ by liberal media agencies, Abe was a conservative, right-wing nationalist leader who left behind an illustrious legacy and the world will surely miss his wise counsel and strategic intuitiveness.

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