A Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson has criticized Sunday’s Japan-South Korea summit meeting.
Wang Wenbin was speaking to reporters on Monday.
He referred to the security cooperation among Japan, the United States and South Korea, in opposition to North Korea’s nuclear and missile development. Strengthening the cooperation was reaffirmed during the summit.
Wang said that the root causes of the issues on the Korean Peninsula are clear. He said all parties should adhere to the direction of political settlement, strive to resolve their legitimate concerns in a balanced manner, and maintain peace and stability on the peninsula.
The spokesperson stressed that the parties concerned should not conspire in a small group to tackle the issues.
Wang also spoke about South Korea’s decision to send experts to the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant to inspect Japan’s plan to release treated and diluted water into the sea.
He said that if Japan is truly sincere about addressing the concerns of stakeholders, it should stop forcibly advancing its plan.
He urged Japan to agree to discuss all possible disposal options other than discharging into the sea.
He added that otherwise, bilateral exchanges and inspections will be of no practical significance and will only be used by Japan as a cover for advancing the plan.
Water used to cool molten fuel mixes with rain and groundwater. The water is treated to remove most of the radioactive materials before being stored, but it still contains tritium.
The treated water will be diluted to reduce tritium levels before it is released into the ocean. Its tritium concentration will be lowered to one-seventh of the World Health Organization’s standards for drinking water.
Source: NHK World
