Abe, who has worked hard to build a personal rapport with Trump, walked a fine line during a parliamentary committee meeting Monday when asked about Trump’s claim from Friday that the Japanese leader had put his name forward for the prize. “I am not saying it’s not true,” he told an opposition lawmaker, adding that the Nobel committee doesn’t reveal nominations and he would refrain from commenting. Abe praised Trump for his diplomacy with North Korea and helping to protect Japan, which relies on the U.S. military for its defense.
