Japan PM aims to resume commercial whale hunt

Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe told parliament yesterday that he would boost his efforts to resume annual commercial whale hunt in Antarctic.

Three dead whales are seen on the deck of a Japanese whale poaching fleet in January 2014. [Photo/Sea Shepherd]

Abe said the international communities criticisms of Tokyo's whale hunting policies comes from a lack of understanding of Japanese culture.

"I want to aim for the resumption of commercial whaling by conducting whaling research in order to obtain scientific data indispensable for the management of whale resources," he told a parliamentary commission.

"To that end, I will step up efforts further to get understanding from the international community," he said.

In March, International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruled Japan's Antarctic whale hunting was not for scientific purposes, and orders Tokyo to revoke permits.

Japan has said it will redesign the program.