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Russia may weaken restrictions on Japanese fish imports — agricultural watchdog

The Russian agricultural watchdog imposed restrictions on fish imports from Japanese enterprises in 2011 for fear of radiological contamination after the Fukushima nuclear power plant accident

MOSCOW, March 27 /TASS/. Russia may weaken restrictions on Japanese fish imports imposed after the Fukushima nuclear power plant accident, the Federal Service for Veterinary and Phytosanitary Control (Rosselkhoznadzor) said on Friday after bilateral talks with representatives of Japan’s veterinary service.

"During the talks, the sides discussed a possibility of weakening temporary restrictions imposed after the Fukushima nuclear power plant accident and including new Japanese fish processing plants in the Customs Union register," the Russian agency said in its statement.

On April 6, 2011, the Russian agricultural watchdog imposed restrictions on fish imports from 242 out 542 Japanese enterprises accredited for delivering this product to Russia for fear of radiological contamination. All the plants that fell under that ban are located in the vicinity of the Fukushima-1 nuclear power plant on Honshu Island.

The sides also discussed a possibility of exporting meat and finished meat products from Russia to Japan.

"The Japanese and Russian veterinary services will hold consultations in Paris in May 2015 on the sidelines of the General session of the International Epizootic Bureau," Russian experts said.