Even as its whalers sail for the Southern Ocean hunting grounds, Japan has agreed to temporarily suspend its pursuit of humpback whales, Chief Cabinet Secretary Nobutaka Machimura indicated Friday.
According to Machimura, the decision follows a request to Fisheries Agency officials by International Whaling Commission chairman William Hogarth to suspend humpback whaling for a year or two while the IWC undergoes reform to be able to hold constructive discussions.
"We will not change the plan to conduct whaling for scientific purposes, but the government has decided to postpone humpback whaling while (the IWC) undergoes normalization," Machimura told a news conference.
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