German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Friday she "regrets" the resignation of Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on health grounds, hailing his "fight for multilateralism". Merkel said she and her fellow veteran leader in the Group of Seven industrialised nations had a "shared foundation of values". "I of course regret his resignation and wish him all the best for his health," she told reporters. "We always worked very, very well together... He was always someone who committed himself to the fight for multilateralism." dlc/fec/txw