“I feel, at this point, political complexities should be set aside… I hope more people can understand and join me,” Hu said.

But many Weibo users , who see Abe as representative of a Japanese right-wing in denial about the country’s war crimes, replied with hostile comments.

Nationalistic commentator Sima Nan wrote on Weibo that it was a natural for Hu to offer condolences over Abe’s death, but he criticised a Chinese reporter who cried in a video report about the shooting.

Beijing grapples with Abe’s mixed legacy on China-Japan relations

That Japan-based reporter Zeng Ying, who works for online news portal ThePaper.cn, could be heard sobbing in a video report about the shooting and spoke highly of Abe, saying he opened the door to more Chinese tourists in Japan and tried to amend the constitution to be less dependent politically and militarily on the US.

But Sima said she was wrong to see the proposed changes, which would water down the pacifist nature of the post-war constitution, as a positive, adding: “She has no judgment [over these issues]. I feel regret.”

Sima also urged people not to care about what foreigners think. “If we express happiness, foreigners might say we are ruthless and lack humanitarian spirit… but we should do whatever we want,” he said.

Another nationalistic blogger known as Guyanmuchan, who has over 6.4 million followers on Weibo and was named as an “internet ambassador” by Guangdong province last year, said people should reflect on why so many people in China were toasting Abe’s death.

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Former Japanese PM Shinzo Abe dies at age 67 after being shot at a campaign event

Former Japanese PM Shinzo Abe dies at age 67 after being shot at a campaign event

“Sorry, we normal Chinese don’t feel sympathy for Abe. As a Japanese politician who was hostile to China and was killed by another Japanese, feeling happy should be the reaction of a normal Chinese,” Guyanmuchan said in a post on Friday.

“Hatred of the West and polarisation among Chinese over certain issues have existed in China for a long time, but the hostile comments over Abe’s death have greatly damaged China’s image,” said one political scientist, who declined to be named for the sensitivity of the issue.

“It is very nasty. The whole world is grieving the death of the assassinated politician.”

Nationalism has been on the rise in China over the past decade, intensified by the increasing tensions between China and the West in recent years.

Anti-Japanese sentiment has been rife on social media since 2012, when protests took place in multiple Chinese cities after Tokyo nationalised a group of islands China also claims, former Tsinghua University political lecturer Wu Qiang said.

This trend overlapped Abe’s second term as prime minister, Wu said, adding: “Basically he’s targeted at the opposite of China’s xenophobic, anti-Japanese and anti-American sentiments.”

In a virtual speech on Taiwan-Japan relations last year, Abe warned that there would be serious consequences if China took military action against the island.

Political scientists said the increasing nationalistic sentiment may put China on a dangerous path.

China’s Xi conveys ‘deep regret’ over sudden death of Shinzo Abe

“The Chinese authorities don’t want to see rampant nationalistic sentiment, which may affect China’s intention of easing relations with Japan and the US” Wu said.

“Easing relations is critical for Beijing, especially after the Ukraine war. But the radical nationalist reaction [to Abe’s assassination] seem kind of out of control.”