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PacNet #34 – The end of Abe’s agony

Japanese Prime Minister Abe Shinzo announced his resignation Wednesday afternoon in Tokyo. Despite widespread agreement that he should have resigned after his party’s rout in the July Upper House election, the decision still stunned many, especially since it came only two days after he had vowed to “stake his job” on extending the Maritime Self-Defense Forces’ (MSDF) mandate to refuel vessels in the Indian Ocean.