"Pained to hear about your ill health, my dear friend Shinzo Abe," says PM Modi.(File)
Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed his pain at the illness of his Japanese counterpart Shinzo Abe and lauded his "wise leadership and personal commitment" for making the ties between the two countries deeper and stronger than ever.
Japan's longest-serving prime minister, Shinzo Abe, earlier in the day, said he intends to step down because a chronic health problem has resurfaced.
"Pained to hear about your ill health, my dear friend Shinzo Abe. In recent years, with your wise leadership and personal commitment, the India-Japan partnership has become deeper and stronger than ever before. I wish and pray for your speedy recovery," PM Modi said in a tweet.
Shinzo Abe earlier said he is suffering a recurrence of the ulcerative colitis that forced him to cut short a first term in office and said that he no longer felt able to continue as prime minister.