Clinton pledges US support for Japan

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton pledged full support for quake-hit Japan as the operator of its stricken nuclear plant said it expects to achieve “cold shutdown” in six to nine months.

Japan’s embattled Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) offered the timeline more than five weeks after a giant quake and tsunami hit the Fukushima Daiichi plant, which has since leaked radiation into the air, soil and sea.

Clinton on a brief, largely symbolic stop in Tokyo, voiced solidarity and vowed the US would “do everything we can to support you as you come through this time of trial”.