Japan has sounded out South Korea about launching regular working-level talks in the hope Seoul lifts its import restrictions on Japanese seafood imposed since the 2011 Fukushima nuclear accident, Japanese and South Korean government sources said Sunday.
Japan hopes the talks will build public reassurance in South Korea, the sources said. But Seoul has not given a clear response amid cautious public opinion, and any rollback is widely seen as hinging on a political decision by President Lee Jae Myung.
The envisaged dialogue channel would involve the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries of Japan and the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety of South Korea.
If the talks start, the two sides would exchange views on Japan’s safety controls and scientific findings on radioactive substances, the sources said.
South Korea halted imports of seafood from eight prefectures in September 2013 following the accident at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, which was crippled by a magnitude-9.0 earthquake and ensuing tsunami. The eight prefectures are Aomori, Iwate, Miyagi, Fukushima, Ibaraki, Tochigi, Gunma and Chiba.
Seoul also requires inspection certificates for radioactive substances for seafood from eight other prefectures, including Hokkaido, Tokyo and Kanagawa.
Japan has urged countries, including China, to respond calmly based on scientific evidence on the effects of the accident and the release of treated water from the plant into the Pacific, which began in August 2023.
In South Korea, lifting the curbs is a sensitive issue that could trigger a public backlash.
However, Seoul has said it plans to consider joining the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership free trade agreement. Japan could use the seafood issue as leverage, as accession apparently requires the consent of all members.
© KYODO
