A tug-of-war is brewing behind the scenes within the government over whether Japan should do more to help the world's poorest countries by granting their products, especially seafood, greater access to its lucrative market.
According to government sources, Japan is considering revising its preferential trade scheme for least-developed countries to make most imports, including those of farm and fishery products, duty-free.
Only a limited number of politically sensitive items, including rice, would be excluded from the trade concessions, the sources said.
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