US VP Kamala Harris to attend Shinzo Abe's state funeral in September

US Vice President Kamala Harris is reportedly set to attend the state funeral of former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. The state funeral is set to take place on September 27.

Nikkei Asia reported Sunday that Harris is expected to be attending Abe’s funeral in September in what would be her first visit to Japan as vice president. Harris would also be meeting with Prime Minister Fumio Kishida during her visit.

Over the weekend, Harris also condemned the incendiary rhetoric by supporters of former President Donald Trump and the attempted attack by Trump’s supporters on an FBI office that was fueled by the agency’s execution of a search warrant on Trump’s Mar-a-Lago residence.

“I will say, as a former prosecutor, but as a citizen of our nation, any attacks on our law enforcement are completely unacceptable,” Harris told reporters Friday last week. “And any so-called leader who engages in rhetoric that in any way suggests that law enforcement should be exposed to that kind of danger is irresponsible and can result in dangerous activities.”

“It’s just highly irresponsible of anyone who calls themselves a leader and certainly anyone who represents the United States of America to engage in rhetoric for the sake of some political objective that can resort in harm to law enforcement officers and agents,” said Harris.

Harris is the highest-ranking official to comment on the recent developments surrounding the scrutiny of the former president.

The White House said President Joe Biden learned of the search warrant that the former president described as a “raid” through news reports as Republican lawmakers sought to accuse Biden of weaponizing the Justice Department against potential election opponents.

Federal agents executed a search warrant on the former president’s Florida residence, seizing documents that are classified as top-secret as part of a probe into whether the former president unlawfully kept the documents.

Also, Friday last week, Harris, who chairs the National Space Council, said the council would be working on revising commercial space regulations that are deemed to be “outdated” as the industry continues to evolve.

Harris said a “new rules framework” for commercial space activities would be on the agenda of the next National Space Council meeting that will take place on September 9. Harris explained that revisions are needed to make sure that the country is seen as a “flag of choice” for commercial space activities.