Japan and China held a meeting last month to discuss the release of treated radioactive water from the crippled Fukushima nuclear plant into the sea and China's subsequent import ban on Japanese marine products, according to sources close to the matter as reported by Kyodo News.

Representatives from Japan's Foreign Ministry, the Nuclear Regulation Authority, and the plant operator Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings Inc. participated in the talks. I Photo: Kyodo News
During the online meeting, there was no significant progress in their discussions. China has maintained its import ban on all seafood products from Japan in response to the water release, while Japan has continuously sought the removal of these measures.
Representatives from Japan's Foreign Ministry, the Nuclear Regulation Authority, and the plant operator Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings Inc. participated in the talks.
Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and Chinese President Xi Jinping had agreed to hold expert consultations on the matter during their last face-to-face meeting in November. However, it is unclear whether the online talks were a result of that agreement.
Japan has persisted in discharging treated water into the ocean from the Fukushima Daiichi power plant, asserting that the release aligns with international safety standards, as reported by the International Atomic Energy Agency.
On the other hand, China has characterized it as "nuclear-contaminated water" and responded strongly by imposing a ban on all imports of seafood products from Japan.
China's top diplomat, Wang Yi, has emphasized the need for an independent "long-term monitoring mechanism" to oversee the discharges from the plant, which suffered nuclear meltdowns triggered by a massive 2011 earthquake and tsunami.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning stated on Friday at a press conference that "China and Japan are continuing to communicate with each other" on the issue.
Comments