Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda and his French counterpart Francois Fillon on Sunday agreed on joint nuclear safety measures, following the crisis at the crippled Fukushima Daiichi power plant.
Noda and Fillon said will act together to promote the strengthening of international nuclear safety standards.
The leaders also agreed to work together in dealing with the eurozone sovereign debt crisis, ahead of the Group of 20 meeting in Cannes early next month.
A powerful earthquake and tsunami wrecked the Fukushima Daichi's cooling systems on March 11, causing meltdown at three of its reactors. Japan's Nuclear Safety Commission estimated the loss from the power plant disaster at $74 billion.
The consequences of the accident at the Fukushima plant may ultimately exceed the level of Chernobyl, a spokesman for Tokyo Electric Power Co., said in April.
The Japanese government said it would lay down new soil pollution standards for the area around the stricken Fukushima, expanding the soil decontamination zone to neighboring prefectures.
On September 12 an explosion rattled France's Marcoule nuclear decommission facility, killing one. There have been no radiation leaks.
