(Bloomberg) -- China and Japan may be close to a breakthrough over Beijing’s ban on seafood imports from Japan, imposed last year in response to the release of treated radioactive water into the sea from the crippled Fukushima nuclear power plant, according to Japanese media reports.
Japan and the International Atomic Energy Agency are planning to expand testing of seawater for radioactive elements to allow other countries to take part, Kyodo News and other Japanese media reported, citing diplomatic sources.
Japan expects that a move allowing China to take part in monitoring of the wastewater releases could pave the way for Beijing to partially or fully lift the ban on seafood imports, the Nikkei newspaper reported without attribution.
The reports come after the stabbing death of a 10-year-old Japanese child in southern China, a development that could further strain relations between the two countries.
China’s foreign minister said late last year that the country wants to be able to check the water itself, according to a Japanese lawmaker who held a meeting with the top diplomat.
China imposed a complete ban on seafood imports from Japan after the release of treated radioactive water from the Fukushima plant began in August last year. China is one of the largest markets for Japanese seafood exporters and the ban has been one of the biggest points of diplomatic friction between Tokyo and Beijing.
Other countries moved to restrict seafood imports from Japan after the start of the release of treated water, but most have since lifted those curbs. Regular testing of seawater since the release began has not shown levels of radiation that would pose a risk to human health, according to the IAEA and Japanese government.
©2024 Bloomberg L.P.
