Ex-PM Abe widow hopes Trump will lead world to peace in 2nd term

Akie Abe, widow of slain former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, expressed hope Sunday that U.S. President-elect Donald Trump will contribute to peace in the world during his second term in the White House.

Recalling an episode when the then president visited Japan as a state guest in May 2019, she said in a speech in Tokyo, "At that time, I realized Mr Trump was a person who does not want war. I want him to lead the world to peace" after his Jan 20 inauguration.

Her remarks came after she dined with Trump and his wife Melania at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida. Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, who took office in early October, has not held an in-person meeting with Trump since his reelection as U.S. president in November.

On what she and Trump discussed last Sunday, Abe did not give any details, only saying, "It was a good dinner."

Shortly after the November 2016 presidential election, then Prime Minister Shinzo Abe hurried to Trump Tower in New York to meet Trump. To nurture their budding friendship, he presented the fellow golf enthusiast with a gold-embellished driver.

Akie Abe recalled Trump saying at a restaurant during his visit to Japan in 2019 that he and Shinzo Abe would not have let World War II take place.