Tokyo and Beijing are closing the deal to resume Japanese seafood exports after the 2023 ban.
China and Japan are closing in an agreement to see the Japanese seafood imports return to the Chinese market after nearly two years of trade ban.
Tokyo said on Friday that the two teams were finalizing the details after a successful meeting in Beijing this week.
Japan’s chief cabinet secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi told reporters that “the export of fishing products to China has signed an agreement with the technical requirements for exporting to China.”
“Exports will be resumed to China as soon as the re-registering process for export-related facilities is completed,” Hayashi said, praising the pending contract as “milestone”.
In August 2023, China banned the Japanese seafood imports after Japan released 1 million metric tons of radical waste water from the previous Fukushima Diichi Nuclear Power Plant. The power plant was destroyed during Japan’s notorious 2011 earthquake and tsunami, when three of its nuclear reactors collapsed.
If the international nuclear power agency supports the safety of wastewater release, the move is controversial with neighbors like China.
The customs of China’s general administration said on Friday that the exports will resume after “significant progress” during the negotiations.
The agreement reveals several new procedures to Japan, whose fish processing facilities are required to register with China.
According to Japanese officials, exporters must include check -up certificates that ensure that seafood has been checked for radioactive materials.
Due to the concern behind the 2011 accident, China’s restrictions on the export of agriculture and sea from 10 Japanese provinces remain.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Joshimasa said Tokyo would continue to push China to remove any remaining restrictions.
