“To me Abe looks like a born-again politician not in the religious sense of the word but in the physical terms,” he said.
“When he was in India as Prime Minister in 2007, it was very much a bitter-sweet experience for him, the speech he delivered at the joint session of (Parliament) was applauded...but during his trip his illness became really really worse. As a result he stepped down as Prime Minister upon returning to Japan,” Taniguchi said. The Japanese official spoke about gestures made by Singh that left a “lasting impression” on Abe. “When Abe was ill during his India trip in 2007, Singh showed a sympathetic attitude,” he said.
When Abe made his next visit to India while not in office, Singh was just about to leave for a UN General Assembly session. However, Singh arranged for five to six Cabinet members to meet Abe at short notice, Taniguchi said. “Prime Minister Singh, you are much older than me, sometimes you look like a teacher and yet you are the one I can call a dear friend,” Taniguchi quoted Abe as saying during their meeting in Tokyo.
Singh and Abe held extensive talks here yesterday on bilateral, regional and global issues. Abe, 59, today became the first Japanese Prime Minister to attend India's Republic Day celebrations as chief guest.
