[1/2]Fishing boats are anchored at a fishing port in Soma, about 45 kilometers from the tsunami-damaged Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant that discharges treated radioactive water into the ocean, Fukushima Prefecture, Japan, August 31, 2023. REUTERS/Kim Kyung-hoon Obtaining licensing rights
TOKYO (Reuters) – Japan has told the World Trade Organization that China’s ban on Japanese seafood after withdrawing treated water from the Fukushima nuclear plant is “completely unacceptable,” Japan’s Foreign Ministry said. He said Late Monday.
In a counter-response to China’s August 31 notification of its action to suspend imports of Japanese aquatic fish, which began last month, Japan said it would explain its positions in relevant WTO committees, and urged China to immediately rescind the action. .
Some Japanese officials have indicated that the country may file a complaint with the World Trade Organization, something the US ambassador to Japan said last week that the United States would support.
Japan will explain the safety of the released waters at diplomatic forums, including the ASEAN summit in Indonesia and the G20 summit in India this month, Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Matsuno told reporters on Tuesday.
Matsuno, the Tokyo government’s chief spokesman, added: “Nothing has been decided about the meeting of the leaders of Japan and China.” Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and Chinese Prime Minister Li Qiang are scheduled to attend the ASEAN and G20 summits, while Chinese President Xi Jinping will not attend both conferences.
In separate statement Japan has also asked China to hold discussions on the import ban based on the provisions of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) agreement, the Japanese Foreign Ministry said on Monday.
Although marine products make up less than 1% of Japan’s global trade, which is dominated by cars, Japan exported about $600 million worth of aquatic products to China in 2022, making it the largest market for Japanese exports, followed by Hong Kong.
To ease the pain of lost demand for seafood, Japan will spend more than 100 billion yen ($682 million) to support the local fisheries industry.
($1 = 146.6100 yen)
Reported by Kantaro Komiya; Edited by Jacqueline Wong and Muralikumar Anantharaman
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