Japan PM Shinzo Abe steps down due to deteriorating health

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe of Japan confirmed his resignation because of ill health, thrusting his country, during a global pandemic, into a new period of political uncertainty after a record-setting tenure that provided unaccustomed stability at the top.

Abe, 65, announced his decision to step down just four days after he had set a record for the longest uninterrupted run as Japanese leader - nearly eight years - but before he had achieved some of his most cherished ambitions.

Since taking over at the end of 2012 as the sixth Prime Minister in five years, he had overseen Japan’s recovery from a devastating earthquake, Tsunami and nuclear disaster, restored the country to a semblance of economic health, and curried favour with an unpredictable American President, Donald J. Trump.

Yet despite his long hold on power - it was his second stint as Prime Minister, having held the post from 2006 to 2007- Abe fell short of his ultimate goal of revising the pacifist Constitution installed by the United States after World War II. He was also unable to secure the return of contested islands claimed by both Japan and Russia so that the two countries could sign a peace treaty to officially end the war.

And in an emotional news conference, Abe expressed regret for a third unfulfilled ambition: securing the return of Japanese citizens kidnapped by North Korea decades ago.

Explaining his decision to step aside, Abe told reporters that he had suffered a relapse of the bowel disease that led him to resign after just a year during his first stint in office.

“I don’t want to make mistakes in important political decisions” while undergoing treatment, Abe said. “I decided I shouldn’t continue sitting in this seat as long as I cannot respond to the mandate of the people with confidence.”

The leading candidates to replace Abe include Taro Aso, the long-serving Deputy Prime Minister and a former Prime Minister; Yoshihide Suga, the Chief Cabinet Secretary to Abe; Shigeru Ishiba, a former Defense Minister who once ran against Abe for party leader; and Fumio Kishida, a former Foreign Minister.

At the news conference, Abe said he had been told by doctors a few months ago that they had found signs of a relapse of the disease. He said that he had since lost much of his strength, and that he would now step aside so he could receive treatment with a new drug that he called promising.

Abe, whose public approval ratings have plummeted into the 30s as the economy has faltered during the pandemic, said he would remain a member of the lower house of Japan’s Parliament and continue to help his party pursue its goals.