The Cabinet on August 26 approved the formation of a panel to handle the disposal of chemical weapons left in China by the Imperial Japanese Army.
Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto is expected to announce the plan to Chinese leaders during his four-day visit to China beginning Sept. 4. His visit is intended to commemorate the 25th anniversary of normalized diplomatic ties.
The panel, to be set up Oct. 1, will be headed by Teijiro Furukawa, deputy chief cabinet secretary, and will include high-ranking officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Finance Ministry, the Health and Welfare Ministry, the Ministry of International Trade and Industry as well as from the Defense Agency, the Science and Technology Agency and the Environment Agency.
The Japanese government estimates that about 700,000 chemical warheads are buried or left in lakes and other places mainly in the northeastern area of China. China claims that the number is much higher.
Disposal of the weapons is mandatory under the prohibition of chemical weapons treaty, which was signed by more than 130 countries and took effect in April.