SEOUL
\nThe head of the United Nations\u2019 nuclear watchdog will meet South Korea\u2019s foreign minister and a top nuclear safety official on Saturday as part of a bid to calm fears over Japan\u2019s plan to discharge treated radioactive water from its tsunami-hit Fukushima plant.
\nRafael Grossi, director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), arrived in South Korea on Friday after wrapping up a trip to Japan, during which the watchdog approved the plan to release wastewater from the Fukushima nuclear facility into the ocean.
\nHis arrival was met with protesters at Seoul\u2019s Gimpo Airport, local media reported.
\nNo expert behind the IAEA\u2019s Fukushima report disagreed with the content, Grossi told news agency Yonhap on Saturday, hinting at his comment during an interview with Reuters one day earlier.
\nPrior to that, Grossi said during a Friday press conference in Japan that he wanted to also meet with the opposition party in South Korea which has been critical of the discharge plan.
\nSouth Korea\u2019s government said on Friday it respected the IAEA\u2019s report and that its own analysis had found the release will not have \u201cany meaningful impact\u201d on its waters.
\nThe administration of President Yoo Suk Yeol has walked a fine line in its stance to Japan\u2019s discharge proposal, as it tries to improve ties with Tokyo. But the plan has stirred anger and concern among South Koreans, prompting some shoppers to buy up sea salt.
\nDespite South Korea\u2019s assent for the plan, a ban on food and seafood products from the Fukushima region would remain in place.
\nOpposition Democratic Party leader Lee Jae-myung has also said the government should try to halt the plan and take the case to the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
SEOUL The head of the United Nations\u2019 nuclear watchdog will meet South Korea\u2019s foreign minister and a top nuclear safety official on Saturday as part of a bid to calm fears over Japan\u2019s plan to discharge treated radioactive water from its tsunami-hit Fukushima plant. Rafael Grossi, director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":342277,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-342263","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world"},"yoast_head":"\n