Podcast

France urges world nuclear review after Japan crisis

Updated: 2011-04-01 10:35

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French President Nicolas Sarkozy called on Thursday for a reform of global nuclear standards by the end of the year, during the first visit by a foreign leader to Japan since the earthquake and tsunami that triggered its atomic disaster.

The G20 chairman said France wants to host a meeting of the bloc's nuclear officials in May to fix new norms in the wake of the crisis at Japan's Fukushima Daiichi plant.

Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan supported the idea.

"In order to avoid recurrence of such an incident, it is our duty to accurately share with the world our experience," he said at a joint news conference.

The world's worst atomic crisis since Chernobyl in 1986 is proving hard to contain and has forced an international rethink of the benefits and safety of nuclear power. It has also compounded an agonizing moment for the Asian nation after the quake and tsunami left more than 27,500 people dead or missing and caused damage that may top $300 billion.

Data on the economic impact of the March 11 disasters showed manufacturing slumped the most on record this month as factories shut and supply chains were disrupted, especially in the car and technology sectors, for which Japan is renowned.

Japan said on Thursday its stricken Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant will have to be scrapped, while pressure also grew for the evacuation zone to be expanded around the crippled facility.

With no end in sight to the world's worst nuclear crisis in 25 years, the US ordered a marine emergency response unit to Japan, and French nuclear group Areva said it was likely to step up assistance to the plant's operator.

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About the broadcaster:

Nelly Min is an editor at China Daily with more than 10 years of experience as a newspaper editor and photographer. She has worked at major newspapers in the U.S., including the Los Angeles Times and the Detroit Free Press. She is also fluent in Korean.