Richard Armitage, former U.S. deputy secretary of state, dies at 79

Richard Armitage, a former U.S. deputy secretary of state known as a longtime Asia hand who had close connections with Japan, has died at the age of 79, his consulting firm said Monday.Armitage, who served in the No. 2 post at the State Department between 2001 and 2005 under President George W. Bush, died of a pulmonary embolism on Sunday, the firm said.A leading voice on U.S.-Japan relations, he urged Tokyo to allow the exercise of the right of collective self-defense and came up with many proposals to strengthen the alliance even after he left government service.Ahead of the U.S. presiden…READ FULL ARTICLE