US President Joe Biden expressed outrage at the fatal shooting of former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Friday, calling him a champion of the U.S.-Japan alliance who cared deeply about the Japanese people and democracy.

“I am stunned, outraged, and deeply saddened by the news that my friend Abe Shinzo, former Prime Minister of Japan, was shot and killed while campaigning. This is a tragedy for Japan and for all who knew him,” Biden said in a statement.

“Even at the moment he was attacked, he was engaged in the work of democracy.”