Japanese PM Shinzo Abe defers India visit

Against the backdrop of violent protests in Guwahati over the new citizenship law, India and Japan decided to defer Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s visit for an annual summit with his counterpart Narendra Modi that was to be held in Assam’s main city Guwahati over last weekend. External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Raveesh Kumar said, “With reference to the proposed visit of Japanese PM Abe to India, both sides have decided to defer the visit to a mutually convenient date in the near future.” Kumar did not give details. No fresh dates were announced for the summit, which is hosted in rotation by the two sides. A Japanese team that went to Guwahati to make a final assessment had been confined to its hotel as the protests continued and flights were affected. Some of the banners and hoardings put up to welcome Abe were vandalised and burnt by protestors.