The US has started bulk buying Japanese seafood to supply its military there in response to a ban China imposed after Tokyo released treated water from its crippled Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant into the sea.

Unveiling the initiative in an interview yesterday, US Ambassador to Japan Rahm Emanuel said Washington should also look more broadly into how it could help offset China’s ban that he said was part of its “economic wars.”

China, which had been the biggest buyer of Japanese seafood, says its ban is due to food safety fears.