In Response to Radioactive Water Dumping
The South Korean government is considering a total ban on the import of Japanese marine products on condition that Japan dumps radioactive water from Fukushima.
At present, the Japanese government is planning to release the water after reducing its concentration. Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga recently remarked that the matter can no longer be delayed although the exact time to do so is yet to be determined.
Tokyo Electric Power Company, which runs the power plant in question, will initiate facility construction through a Nuclear Regulation Authority review once the Japanese government finalizes its plan. At this moment, the power plant is producing 180 tons of highly radioactive water a day. The first dumping is likely to occur in October 2022.
Even so, the Japanese government is asking the South Korean government to lift regulations on the import of Japanese marine products. “Japanese food products have been scientifically proven to be safe,” Japanese Foreign Affairs Minister Toshimitsu Motegi said at the ASEAN+3 Foreign Ministers’ Meeting on Sept. 9. “Import regulations on Japanese food products have to be removed in the nearest future possible,” Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Minister Kotaro Nogami said on Oct. 21.