Yoon Acknowledges 'Contaminated Water Discharge'... Three Conditions Set for 'Public Safety'

Japan-Korea Summit on Contaminated Water Discharge... Yoon "Respect IAEA Announcement"
Requests to Minimize Public Anxiety, Including 'Stop Discharge if Exceeding Standards'
Political Burden on Yoon... Democratic Party's 'Total Opposition' Expected to Intensify

President Yoon Suk-yeol on the 12th (local time) requested Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida to guarantee the participation of Korean experts in the inspection process of the Fukushima contaminated water discharge into the ocean. However, while expressing respect for the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)'s announcement that the contaminated water discharge plan meets international safety standards, he distanced himself from the public opinion opposing the discharge. The presidential office stated that considering the public's concerns, the process that can ensure public safety holds significance.

On the same day, President Yoon held a summit meeting with Prime Minister Kishida on the sidelines of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) summit and discussed the issue of Fukushima contaminated water discharge.

The conditions set by President Yoon that day were mainly three: ▲ Participation of Korean experts in the discharge inspection process ▲ Real-time sharing of monitoring information on whether the entire discharge process is carried out as planned ▲ Immediate suspension of discharge if the concentration of radioactive materials exceeds the standard. While maintaining the existing government stance of "respecting the announcement by the IAEA, a representative UN-affiliated international organization in the field of nuclear safety," he proposed these three conditions including "participation of our experts" to minimize public anxiety.

Previously, the government had hoped for the participation of Korean experts in the local office established by the IAEA at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant. Although specific consultations have not yet been made, the government has stated that it plans to negotiate with the IAEA to guarantee Korean participation in the IAEA's future activities to reassure the public. The government has also participated in the Fukushima contaminated water monitoring task force (TF) composed of experts from 11 countries and in the IAEA's cross-verification of Fukushima contaminated water samples.

The sharing of the remaining discharge process with the Korean side and the suspension of discharge according to radioactive standards were also positively received by Prime Minister Kishida. Kishida stated, "After the start of ocean discharge, Japan will receive IAEA's review and promptly disclose monitoring information conducted by Japan with high transparency," and promised, "If problems arise such as the concentration of radioactive materials exceeding the standard through this monitoring, appropriate measures including immediate suspension of discharge as planned will be taken."

However, it is clear that the biggest variable in the Japanese government's discharge plan disappeared as President Yoon expressed a message of trust in the IAEA's announcement. Initially, the Japanese government intended to first obtain the consent of the closest neighboring country, the Korean government, to reduce the grounds for opposition.

On the other hand, President Yoon's political burden is evaluated to have somewhat increased. The opposition parties, including the Democratic Party of Korea, have maintained the principle of "fundamental opposition to discharge" and intensified their offensive, while various public opinion polls still reflect the public's anxiety.

Considering these concerns, President Yoon did not omit economic agenda items that could yield practical benefits even at the 6th Korea-Japan summit. On that day, they also agreed to resume the Korea-Japan High-Level Economic Consultative Meeting (a comprehensive economic consultative body) within the year and sought cooperation measures in various fields such as diplomacy, security, economy, culture, and human exchange.

They also jointly condemned North Korea's ICBM (intercontinental ballistic missile) launch. The two leaders emphasized that it is a serious provocation that constitutes a grave violation of multiple United Nations Security Council resolutions and escalates tensions on the Korean Peninsula and in the region, strongly condemning it. They also shared the recognition that North Korea's nuclear missile provocations seriously undermine regional and global peace and agreed to maintain close communication and cooperation among the Korea-Japan and Korea-US-Japan leaders.

They also delivered a welcoming message regarding the U.S. proposal for the Korea-US-Japan trilateral summit, which will be a groundbreaking milestone for future trilateral security cooperation. The two leaders agreed on the strategic importance of the Indo-Pacific region and pledged to continue solidarity in promoting Korea's "Free, Peaceful, and Prosperous Indo-Pacific Strategy" and Japan's "Free and Open Indo-Pacific" vision.

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