No lifting of ban on Fukushima seafood: Yoon's office

Home > National > Politics

print dictionary print

No lifting of ban on Fukushima seafood: Yoon's office

Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol, left, and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, right, shake hands at their bilateral summit at the prime minister's residence in Tokyo on March 16. [JOINT PRESS CORPS]

Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol, left, and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, right, shake hands at their bilateral summit at the prime minister's residence in Tokyo on March 16. [JOINT PRESS CORPS]

 
Korea will not be lifting its ban on seafood imports from Japan's Fukushima area, the presidential office said, denying reports that there was room for consideration on the issue.  
 
"When it comes to the import of Japanese seafood products, there is no change in the government's position that the health and safety of the people is the top priority," the presidential office in a statement said Thursday. "Seafood products from Fukushima will never enter this country."
 
The statement comes amid growing concern in Korea over resuming the import of seafood from the crippled Fukushima nuclear plant area following President Yoon Suk Yeol's summit with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida in Tokyo earlier this month, which has led to a thaw in bilateral relations.
 
After the summit on March 16, Japanese media outlets reported that Japan had requested Korea to abolish restrictions on imports of seafood products from the Fukushima region.
 
Japan's Kyodo News reported Wednesday that Yoon told Japanese lawmakers during his Tokyo visit that he is committed to seeking public understanding regarding Japan's plan to release treated radioactive water into the sea from the defunct Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, citing a diplomatic source.
 
Yoon reportedly vowed all-out efforts to quell concerns in Korea over the water discharge, "even if it takes time," according to the source, during a meeting with former Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga and other members of a parliamentarian union promoting ties between the two countries on March 17.
 
A massive earthquake and tsunami struck Japan on March 11, 2011, destroying the Fukushima nuclear power plant.
 
Korea has banned all seafood imports from the Fukushima region since 2013 because of concerns over radiation levels. The issue has remained another sore point in bilateral relations.
 
Japan announced last year a controversial decision to gradually release more than 1.3 million tons of radioactive water stored in tanks at the plant into the Pacific Ocean starting this year, a source of concern for environmental groups, Koreans and other neighboring countries.
 
The liberal Democratic Party (DP) has questioned whether Yoon had made any concessions to Kishida during the summit while easing bilateral ties.
 
On Thursday, DP lawmakers protested in front of the National Assembly in western Seoul, demanding Yoon to "clearly declare to the world that the import of Fukushima seafood is absolutely prohibited" and condemning Japan's planned release of the radioactive water.
 
DP Rep. Yoon Jae-kab, chair of the parliamentary Agriculture, Food, Rural Affairs, Oceans, and Fisheries Committee, shaved his head in protest of the possible import of fishery products from Fukushima and condemned what he claimed to be a "humiliating diplomacy" with Japan.
 
On March 20, a presidential official said he couldn't confirm what was said during the summit as they were confidential when asked about the seafood import ban.
 
He said the ban on Japanese seafood imports can only be lifted when there is enough scientific evidence and public sentiment to back the measure.
 
But the official confirmed to reporters that "some Japanese politicians are said to have mentioned this issue" when meeting with Yoon during the two-day trip to Tokyo.
 
The presidential office said it had expressed regret to Tokyo through diplomatic channels over "the Japanese side's completely unfounded or distorted reports" following the summit.
 
"The Japanese media tends to report untrue information and withdraw it when the reports are confirmed to be untrue," the official said, addressing Japanese media reports on what was discussed during the meeting.
 
In their bilateral summit, Yoon and Kishida agreed to overcome issues related to historical disputes, namely the compensation of Japan's wartime forced labor victims, while agreeing to normalize their military intelligence-sharing pact and resume shuttle diplomacy between the two countries.
 
The two leaders are expected to be reunited soon, as Kishida invited Yoon to the Group of Seven Summit in Hiroshima in May.
 
The invitation also raises the possibility of scheduling Kishida's visit to Seoul this year. Some reports say such a trip could happen as early as this summer, an opportunity to iron out remaining bilateral issues between the two countries. 

BY SARAH KIM [kim.sarah@joongang.co.kr]
Log in to Twitter or Facebook account to connect
with the Korea JoongAng Daily
help-image Social comment?
s
lock icon

To write comments, please log in to one of the accounts.

Standards Board Policy (0/250자)