OSAKA: The trade ministers of the Group of Seven advanced economies on Sunday called for the immediate removal of a ban on imports of Japanese fishery products, apparently referring to China’s trade restrictions imposed in response to Japan’s release into the ocean of treated water from its Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant.

The G-7 members “strongly call for the immediate repeal of any…measures that unnecessarily restrict trade, including the newly introduced import restrictions on Japanese food products,” the trade ministers said in a joint statement issued after a two-day meeting in the western Japan city of Osaka.

The ministers expressed concern about what they see as “the growing recurrence” of coercive economic measures that put pressure on trading partners through such export and import restrictions.

China imposed a blanket ban on imports of Japanese fishery products immediately after the meltdown-crippled nuclear plant started releasing the treated water, which contains small amounts of radioactive tritium, into the ocean in late August. Later, Russia also imposed restrictions on Japanese fishery products.

Japan reiterated that “a calm response based on scientific grounds is needed,” Japanese Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa, who co-chaired the meeting, said at a press conference after the gathering, referring to China’s import ban.

“Many countries clearly supported Japan’s position” on the Chinese ban, said Japanese trade minister Yasutoshi Nishimura, another co-chair of the meeting. The G-7 countries agreed to work together to counter economic coercion, Nishimura added.

The G-7 statement said the trade ministers “reiterate and affirm the importance of import restrictions on food products being science-based and only applied in accordance with…international trade rules.”

The ministers also agreed to work together to strengthen corporate preparedness to help businesses avoid disadvantages due to economic coercion.

The statement stressed “the need for further efforts to build resilient and reliable supply chains” for critical goods such as critical minerals, semiconductors and batteries. The G-7 countries called for unity with resource-rich countries and developing countries to this goal while deploring actions to weaponize economic dependencies.

JIJI Press