This aerial picture shows storage tanks (left) used for storing treated water at TEPCO's crippled Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant in Okuma, Fukushima prefecture on Aug 24, 2023. (PHOTO / JIJI PRESS VIA AFP)

BEIJING - A Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson on Thursday made remarks on Japan's start of the second round of ocean discharge of Fukushima nuclear-contaminated water.

The Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) on Thursday announced that it has begun the second round of ocean discharge of the Fukushima nuclear-contaminated water and plans to release 7,800 tonnes of such water over 17 days.

The Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson said the international community needs to push for an international monitoring arrangement that will stay effective for the long haul and ensure that Japan's neighboring countries and other stakeholders can participate substantively in the arrangement

In response, the Chinese spokesperson said China's position on the discharge is consistent and clear. "We firmly oppose this unilateral move by Japan."

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"I reiterate that the ocean belongs to all humanity. The Japanese government needs to respond to all the concerns of the international community, have full, sincere communication with neighboring countries, and dispose of the nuclear-contaminated water in a responsible way," said the spokesperson.

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The spokesperson added that the international community needs to push for an international monitoring arrangement that will stay effective for the long haul and ensure that Japan's neighboring countries and other stakeholders can participate substantively in the arrangement.