Revoke wrong decision, Tokyo urged

In response to a question on the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station at a regular media briefing, on March 15, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian said China is very concerned about Japan’s plans to discharge the nuclearcontaminated water.

He noted that it is extremely irresponsible to turn a deaf ear to the concerns of all parties and to proceed in a hasty manner with the preparatory work to discharge the nuclear-contaminated water into the ocean.

For a long time, the international community has raised its doubts and concerns to the Japanese side. The IAEA’s technical working group paid its first visit to Japan last month and raised a number of questions. Its assessment of the disposal of nuclear-contaminated water is still ongoing.

Japan should earnestly respond to the legitimate concerns of the international community, revoke the wrong decision to release the nuclearcontaminated water into the ocean, and stop the preparatory work immediately, he said.

Japan should abide by its due international obligations and avoid taking the liberty of starting the discharge of nuclearcontaminated water into the sea before reaching a consensus with stakeholders and relevant international organizations including the IAEA.