Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said on Wednesday he explained Japan's stance on the release of treated water from the Fukushima nuclear plant in a conversation with Chinese premier Li Qiang on the sidelines of a regional meeting in Indonesia.

Kishida told reporters he spoke briefly with Qiang ahead of a session at the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in Jakarta.

"During the chat, I explained Japan's position on the treated water to Premier Li," Kishida said. He refused to say how Li had responded.

Japan started releasing radioactive treated water from the wrecked Fukushima nuclear power plant into the ocean last month, drawing strong criticism from China. In retaliation, China has imposed a blanket ban on all aquatic imports from Japan.

The water is treated to remove most radioactive elements except for tritium, a radionuclide difficult to separate from water, and then diluted to internationally accepted levels before being released into the ocean.

(Reporting by Sakura Murakami and Rocky Swift; Editing by Tomasz Janowski)