Exiting atomic power unrealistic for Japan, minister says, disputing colleague

Japan's Economy, Trade and Industry Minister Isshu Sugawara attends a news conference at Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's official residence in Tokyo, Japan September 11, 2019. REUTERS/Issei Kato

TOKYO (Reuters) - Exiting nuclear power in Japan is unrealistic, the country's new industry minister said on Thursday, in comments that reiterated the government's line but are at odds with those made a day earlier by another newly installed cabinet member.

The conflicting comments by cabinet members appointed by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Wednesday highlight the abiding sensitivities of nuclear power in Japan, more than eight years after the Fukushima catastrophe caused mass evacuations and Japan's worst energy crisis in the modern era.