수산물 수입금지 한일 외교갈등으로 번지나

Published : Sept 15, 2013 - 18:08 Updated : Sept 15, 2013 - 18:16

정부의 후쿠시마 제1원전 주변 8개현의 수산물 금수조치가 한•일 외교갈등으로 번질 기미를 보이고 있다.

한국 정부는 후쿠시마 제1원전 오염수 해양 유출 사태로 국민 불안이 커지자 후쿠시마•이바라키•군마•미야기•이와테•도치기•지바•아오모리 등 8개 현에서 나오는 50종의 수산물의 수입을 지난 9일부터 금지했다.

이와 관련해 일본 수산청의 가가와 겐지(香川謙二) 증식추진부장이 16일 세종시의 식품 의약품 안전처를 방문해 관계자들을 만나고 외교부와 국토해양부 등의 당국자들과도 대담할 예정이다.

가가와 국장은 한국 정부 당국자들에게 수입금지의 근거와 경위 등에 대한 설명을 요구하는 한편 더불어 금수 조치의 철회를 요구할 것으로 예상된다. 일본은 한국정부의 수입금지 조치가 “과학적 근거가 없다”고 주장하고 있다. 하지만 최근 발전소 수질 분석에 의하면 기준치의 두 배 이상인 1L당 150,000 베크렐(Bq)이 검출됐다.

일본 정부는 한국의 수산물 수입금지 조치에 대해 세계무역기구(WTO)에 소송을 제기하는 방안을 고려 중인 것으로 알려졌다.

하지만 한국은 일본 인근의 국가들에 비해 금수조치가 늦게 내려진 편이다. 중국, 대만은 일본 수산물과 채소 등 수입을 원전 사고 후 즉시 중단시켰지만 일본 정부는 당시 어떠한 법적 조치도 취하지 않았다.

(영문: 석기현 코리아헤럴드 기자/ 한글: 성진우 인턴기자)

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Tension flares with Japan over Korea’s fisheries import ban

The Japanese government is moving to protest South Korea’s ban on all fisheries products from Fukushima and adjacent regions for fear of radioactive exposure, posing another strain on the bilateral relations already frayed by historical rows.

A high-ranking official at Japan’s Fisheries Agency is set to visit South Korea on Monday in an apparent move to pressure Seoul into lifting the import ban, reports said.

Kenji Kagawa, director-general of Resources Enhancement Promotion Department, will request the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety officials in Sejong City to explain the basis of the restriction, according to the reports.

The agency is also reviewing plans to file a complaint with the World Trade Organization if it does not receive an “acceptable” explanation for the ban, Japan’s Sankei Shimbun reported.

Last week, the Korean government placed import bans on 50 fisheries in Fukushima and seven other prefectures -- Ibaraki, Gunma, Miyagi, Iwate, Tochigi, Chiba and Aomori -- as public apprehension aggravated over the “lax safety control” of fisheries products.

Along with the ban, the Korean government lowered the allowed the level of radiation in fisheries products from 370 becquerels per kilogram to 100 becquerels.

Korea is the latest to join a series of import bans from Japan’s neighboring countries.

Immediately after the nuclear accident in 2011, China and Taiwan banned the imports of seafood, dairy and vegetable products from Japan. But no legal countermeasure was taken by the Japanese government.

Public criticism has been high here over the government’s lax standards on imports of fish from its neighbor. About 3,010 tons of fish with radioactive materials in varying levels have been brought into the country since the 2011 meltdown at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant.

The Japanese government’s refusal to provide detailed information about the leaks has also added to the strong public backlash and radiation scare.

Japanese officials in July confirmed long-held suspicions that the crippled reactors have been leaking water contaminated with radioactive materials. Tokyo Electric Power Corp., the operator, said some 300 tons of contaminated water has been seeping into the ocean every day.

Despite Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s continued assurance that “everything is under control,” the plant’s operator announced Saturday that tritium in a recent sample measured 150,000 becquerels per liter, more than twice the limit accepted for release into the ocean.

Experts say the Fukushima accident is the biggest nuclear crisis after the Chernobyl disaster in 1986.

To stop the leaks Japan has announced an expensive experimental plan to create a 1.4-kilometer wall of frozen soil around the plant to prevent groundwater from entering the reactor buildings.

Creating such an underground barrier is often used for subway construction, and the technique was once used on a smaller scale in Tennessee for six years to separate radioactive waste.

By Suk Gee-hyun

monicasuk@heraldcorp.com