China Attempts to ‘Gain Diplomatic Advantages’ by Opposing Japan’s Release of Treated Nuclear Water: Expert

The storage tanks for treated water at the tsunami-crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant in Okuma town, Fukushima prefecture, Japan, on Aug. 22, 2023. Kyodo via Reuters

China announced on Aug. 24 that it would ban all imports of Japanese seafood as Japan began releasing radioactive water into the Pacific Ocean.

Tokyo signed off on the plan two years ago and was given a green light by the U.N. nuclear watchdog last month. The discharge is a key step in decommissioning the Fukushima Daiichi plant after it was destroyed by a tsunami in 2011.