G7 meeting: Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida has promised to keep world leaders safe who will arrive in Japan for Group of Seven (G7) meetings next month. Kishida took this step a day after a smoke bomb was (reportedly) thrown at him by a man in Wakayama. They have decided to step up security during the dates of the summit and other gatherings of dignitaries in Hiroshima next month.
“Japan as a whole should strive to provide maximum security during the summit (in Hiroshima next month) and other gatherings of dignitaries from around the world,” Kishida said on Sunday, reports CNN. His comments came after G7 foreign ministers, including US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, began three days of talks on Sunday in the Karuizawa region of Nagano Prefecture.
A small explosive was thrown at the venue
On Saturday, a small explosive device was thrown at the site where Kishida was to give a speech in support of the ruling party’s candidate in a by-election in Wakayama. Kishida was evacuated safely from the venue in Wakayama. According to news reports, the attack has sent shockwaves in Japan and has drawn comparisons with the assassination of former Japanese PM Shinzo Abe in July last year. He was shot last July during a campaign speech in the Nara region of Japan.
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Kishida vowed that the attack would not affect the democratic process
Campaigning for Japan’s nationwide local elections has begun. Speaking to reporters from his official residence in Tokyo, Kishida vowed that the attack would not affect the democratic process in Japan. He said, “Violence during elections, which are the basis of democracy, cannot be tolerated at all.” According to the CNN report, Kishida said, “It is important to take this election to the end. It is important for our country and our democracy that the voice of the voters is clearly expressed through elections.”
A man was arrested after throwing “what appears to be a smoke bomb,” CNN cited Kyodo News as saying. Meanwhile, police in Japan are searching the home of a man who threw an apparent pipe bomb before Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida’s speech, NHK World-Japan reported.
(With inputs from ANI)
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