Abe’s legacy is a world better prepared to confront China

One of Abe’s final diplomatic acts, earlier this year, was to sound an alarm about China’s increasingly dangerous menacing of Taiwan. He publicly called for the United States to abandon its policy of “strategic ambiguity” and publicly declare its intention to come to Taiwan’s defense if China attacks.

“The human tragedy that has befallen Ukraine has taught us a bitter lesson,” he wrote. “There must no longer be any room for doubt in our resolve concerning Taiwan, and in our determination to defend freedom, democracy, human rights, and the rule of law.”

To the extent that the West has prepared to defend these values as China seeks to erode them, Abe deserves significant credit. That is a legacy even his heinous murder can never overshadow.