Conflicting Japanese Public Opinion on South Korea's Fukushima Inspection Team Dispatch... "Building Trust" vs "Did We Just Give That Up?"

No Other National Inspections Allowed Besides IAEA
However, It Seems Difficult to Overturn IAEA's Decision

As South Korea and Japan have agreed to dispatch a team of Korean experts for an on-site inspection related to the Fukushima contaminated water, mixed reactions are emerging within Japan. This is because Japan has never allowed any country other than the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to conduct separate verification regarding Fukushima until now.

While some believe that the dispatch of the inspection team could dispel misunderstandings surrounding the contaminated water, there are also criticisms that "Kishida has effectively conceded" and skepticism that the dispatch will be insufficient to calm public opinion.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

On the 8th, the Nihon Keizai Shimbun (Nikkei) editorial stated, "South Korea has a high level of concern about the contaminated water from the perspective of food safety," and added, "It is a significant step forward that the two leaders were able to reach an agreement. It would be desirable if mutual distrust can be resolved through building various forms of cooperation." The dispatch of the inspection team is seen as part of shuttle diplomacy, which could alleviate South Korea's concerns about the discharge of contaminated water.

The Asahi Shimbun editorial also noted, "Japan's sincere response to the Korean public's growing anxiety about health and safety could break down the barriers between the two countries."

However, opinions among Japan's Korea-Japan diplomacy experts differed. Professor Kimura Kan of Kobe Graduate School pointed out in an interview with Asahi, "This meeting appeared as if South Korea was on the offensive and Japan was defending," and added, "South Korea succeeded in securing the dispatch of an expert on-site inspection team and even elicited an apology from Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida regarding colonial rule." The dispatch of the Fukushima inspection team was disadvantageous for Japan, but it appears that Prime Minister Kishida effectively conceded.

Furthermore, there is skepticism that the dispatch of the inspection team will not be able to dispel South Korea's concerns. In a column by the Seoul correspondent, the Mainichi Shimbun pointed out, "Although the two leaders agreed on the dispatch of a Korean expert on-site inspection team, it is unclear to what extent the concerns and opposition of the Korean public will be alleviated." The Tokyo Shimbun also stated, "Shuttle diplomacy has resumed, but opposition remains regarding the forced labor issue and Fukushima contaminated water. Whether government-level cooperation can gain the understanding of the Korean public is the key to sustaining shuttle diplomacy."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

On Japanese social networking services (SNS), reactions to the dispatch of the inspection team are becoming even more heated. Opinions such as "The IAEA is responsible for this matter, so I don't understand why only South Korea should be specially invited," "Due to Kishida's submissive diplomacy, issues like contaminated water and military matters are all being led by South Korea," and "Showing this is the only way to build trust in the Kishida administration" are circulating.

Amid divided opinions within Japan regarding the dispatch of the inspection team, attention is focused on whether the team visiting Japan on the 23rd will bring meaningful results. The dispatch is proceeding independently of IAEA verification, and Japan has never allowed verification work by any foreign country other than the IAEA. The key issue will be how much meaningful information South Korea can obtain beyond what the IAEA has identified. However, since Japan's position is to decide on the discharge of contaminated water based on the IAEA's judgment, there are also differing opinions that the dispatch of the inspection team will not have a significant impact.

Currently, the IAEA is conducting a two-track verification process involving Secretariat staff and experts from 11 countries including South Korea, the United States, China, the United Kingdom, and France, as well as monitoring work by experts from four countries: South Korea, the United States, France, and Switzerland. The work is in its final stages, with the IAEA now only remaining to complete the last verification procedures for the final report scheduled for release early next month.

As it is widely known that the IAEA is likely to conclude that there are no significant problems with the discharge of contaminated water, controversy is also arising in the international community. On the 4th, the IAEA announced that it had no issues with the Japanese government's drastic reduction of the number of radionuclides measured in Fukushima nuclear power plant contaminated water from 64 to 30. The IAEA stated in its report, "The radioactive nuclides selected for monitoring by the Japanese Nuclear Regulation Authority are important, and no nuclides that could have a significant impact on human health have been excluded."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.