China's Foreign Ministry has reiterated Beijing's opposition to the Japanese government's plan to release treated and diluted water from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant.

Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin made the remark at a news conference on Friday.

Wang said China consistently calls on Japan to immediately abort the plan to discharge "contaminated" water into the sea, and that there has not been any change to that stance.

He said the plan disregards the safety and interests of people in neighboring and Pacific island countries, and that going ahead with it will lead to severe distrust and cause a backlash in the world community.

Water used to cool molten nuclear fuel at the Fukushima Daiichi plant mixes with rain and groundwater. The accumulated water is treated to remove most radioactive substances, but still contains tritium.

The Japanese government plans to dilute the water to reduce the tritium level to about one-seventh of the World Health Organization's standard for drinking water quality.

On Thursday, ASEAN foreign ministers and their counterparts from China, Japan and South Korea met in Indonesia. At the gathering, China's top diplomat Wang Yi described the treated water as "contaminated" in expressing Beijing's opposition to Japan's plan.

Japanese Foreign Minister Hayashi Yoshimasa reacted by saying Wang's remark is not based on science and that Japan intends to implement the plan in accordance with international standards.