Japan to Provide Fisheries Research Vessels to 4 Pacific Island Nations; Treated Water Concerns to Be Dispelled

The Yomiuri Shimbun

17:20 JST, July 13, 2024

The government plans to provide one fisheries research vessel free of charge to each of the four Pacific island nations of Marshall Islands, Micronesia, Papua New Guinea and Vanuatu, it has been learned.

Prime Minister Fumio Kishida will formally announce the plan during the 10th Pacific Islands Leaders Meeting, a summit-level meeting that Japan will host in Tokyo from Tuesday through Thursday.

The aim of the plan is to help the four island nations carry out surveys on fisheries resources and the marine environment on their own in order to dispel concerns over the discharge of treated water from the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant of Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings, Inc.

Because countries such as the United States and France had repeatedly carried out nuclear tests in the Southern Pacific, island nations in the region are sensitive to matters related to nuclear power and have been very wary about the treated water.

One of the crucial issues for Japan at the meeting is to counter China’s description of the treated water as “nuclear contaminated water”, and to convince the Pacific island nations of Japan’s assertions of safety that are based on scientific evidence.

In addition, Japan plans to provide a patrol boat free of charge to the South Pacific island nation of Nauru to assist the country in cracking down on illegal fishing. Drug trafficking, human trafficking, and other crimes at sea are also reportedly rampant in Nauru’s territorial waters and exclusive economic zone. Through the provision of a patrol boat, Japan intends to help Nauru boost surveillance and maritime law enforcement capabilities at sea.