China once again urges Japan to stop pushing through ocean discharge plan

China on Monday once again urged Japan to stop its plan to discharge nuclear-contaminated water into the ocean at the ongoing 53rd session of the UN Human Rights Council.

The UN Human Rights Council on Monday adopted the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) outcome of Japan. Speaking in the discussion on the UPR outcome of Japan, a Chinese diplomat emphasized that China once again urges Japan to stop the plan to discharge nuclear-contaminated water into the ocean.

The Chinese diplomat urged Japan to dispose of it in a science-based, safe and transparent manner, and cooperate with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to put in place a long-term international monitoring mechanism involving Japan's neighbors and other stakeholders as soon as possible.

The diplomat pointed out that out of economic cost considerations, Japan ignored the concerns and opposition of the international community, and its continuous discharge of millions of tons of Fukushima nuclear-contaminated water into the sea in the next 30 years is the equivalent of treating the Pacific Ocean like a "sewer."