July 23, 2011
The Japanese government led by the Democratic Party has promoted exports of nuclear power plants (NPPs) as part of “Overseas Infrastructure Packages” under the “New Growth Strategy”, seeking to capture the potential market estimated at 19.7 trillion yen. Despite Japan’s incompetence being brought to light in the wake of the Fukushima accident, the government is still eager to export NPPs.
Prime Minister Kan Naoto at his New Year policy speech displayed his enthusiasm, “As a result of my own sales pitch to the Vietnamese prime minister, an overseas advance of Japanese NPP facilities has come about for the first time.”
At the Lower House Budget Committee meeting on July 20, he expressed his intention to continue NPP exports to Vietnam, saying, “Diplomatic procedures have already been underway.”
At the Upper House Budget Committee meeting on the following day, he again boasted, “Japanese NPP technology is receiving a high evaluation from abroad.” He, however, hinted at reconsidering the “New Growth Strategy”.
Cabinet Spokesman Edano Yukio also said that the government will continue promoting NPP exports, stating, “In order to not break the trust of the world’s governments, we must firmly honor our promises.”
Japan has been negotiating with India, South Africa, Turkey, the UAE, and Brazil on nuclear cooperation agreements which Japan will use to export Japanese NPPs. With the UAE, an agreement has almost been reached, and is only waiting for the signing.
Within the ongoing sessions of the Diet, the government will ask for Diet approval in regard to similar agreements with Jordan, Russia, South Korea, and Vietnam. These countries have already signed agreements, but they have not come into effect yet.
On April 13, the day after the Fukushima crisis was upgraded to severity Level Seven, the Lower House Budget Committee was about to endorse the Japan-Jordan Nuclear Cooperation Agreement which would enable Japanese corporations to participate in Jordan’s NPP construction project.
Japanese Communist Party representative Kasai Akira criticized this move at that time, saying, “The JCP in the first place is opposed to the agreement. Besides, giving the nod to such a pact at a time like this, Japan will decisively lose international trust.”
Subsequently, on April 19 during a discussion on funding NPP exports at a Lower House’s financial committee meeting, another JCP representative, Sasaki Kensho, also criticized the government for selling NPPs to other countries.
Prime Minister Kan Naoto at his New Year policy speech displayed his enthusiasm, “As a result of my own sales pitch to the Vietnamese prime minister, an overseas advance of Japanese NPP facilities has come about for the first time.”
At the Lower House Budget Committee meeting on July 20, he expressed his intention to continue NPP exports to Vietnam, saying, “Diplomatic procedures have already been underway.”
At the Upper House Budget Committee meeting on the following day, he again boasted, “Japanese NPP technology is receiving a high evaluation from abroad.” He, however, hinted at reconsidering the “New Growth Strategy”.
Cabinet Spokesman Edano Yukio also said that the government will continue promoting NPP exports, stating, “In order to not break the trust of the world’s governments, we must firmly honor our promises.”
Japan has been negotiating with India, South Africa, Turkey, the UAE, and Brazil on nuclear cooperation agreements which Japan will use to export Japanese NPPs. With the UAE, an agreement has almost been reached, and is only waiting for the signing.
Within the ongoing sessions of the Diet, the government will ask for Diet approval in regard to similar agreements with Jordan, Russia, South Korea, and Vietnam. These countries have already signed agreements, but they have not come into effect yet.
On April 13, the day after the Fukushima crisis was upgraded to severity Level Seven, the Lower House Budget Committee was about to endorse the Japan-Jordan Nuclear Cooperation Agreement which would enable Japanese corporations to participate in Jordan’s NPP construction project.
Japanese Communist Party representative Kasai Akira criticized this move at that time, saying, “The JCP in the first place is opposed to the agreement. Besides, giving the nod to such a pact at a time like this, Japan will decisively lose international trust.”
Subsequently, on April 19 during a discussion on funding NPP exports at a Lower House’s financial committee meeting, another JCP representative, Sasaki Kensho, also criticized the government for selling NPPs to other countries.
