S. Korea, Japan eye holding working-level consultations over Fukushima water next week

▲ In this file photo, South Korean and Japanese officials hold working-level consultations at Seoul's foreign ministry on May 12, 2023, over Tokyo's plan to discharge contaminated water from the crippled Fukushima nuclear power plant. (Yonhap)

S Korea-Japan-Fukushima water

S. Korea, Japan eye holding working-level consultations over Fukushima water next week

SEOUL, July 20 (Yonhap) -- South Korea and Japan are discussing holding working-level consultations next week to discuss Seoul's requests regarding Tokyo's plan to discharge contaminated water from the crippled Fukushima nuclear power plant, according to sources Thursday.

According to the sources, the two sides are discussing holding director-general-level talks next week in Japan to discuss follow-up measures to the results of a bilateral summit held on the sidelines of a North Atlantic Treaty Organization summit held in Vilnius, Lithuania, earlier this month.

During the summit between President Yoon Suk Yeol and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida on July 12, Yoon asked Tokyo to include South Korean experts in monitoring the planned release of the water.

Yoon also asked that the discharge be stopped immediately if the concentration of radioactive material in the water exceeds standard levels and that Japan promptly inform the South.

The two countries previously held working-level discussions on the Fukushima water issue in Seoul in May.

The International Atomic Energy Agency has priority in deciding whether to include a South Korean expert in the water monitoring team, but it will require cooperation from the Japanese authorities in making such a decision, officials said.

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