US congratulates Japan's Abe on re-election

The United States welcomed Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's easy re-election victory Sunday in snap polls, hailing his "strong leadership" on international crises. "The US-Japan alliance is the cornerstone of peace and prosperity in the Asia-Pacific," White House spokesman Josh Earnest said in a statement. Media exit polls showed his ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and its junior partner Komeito had swept the ballot, with an unassailable two-thirds majority in