Japanese whaling

Japanese whaling involves hunting whales, primarily for scientific research and cultural reasons, despite international opposition. Japan conducts annual expeditions in the Southern Ocean and Arctic to catch whales, claiming the meat is part of tradition and the research aids conservation. Critics argue these hunts are commercial in disguise and threaten whale populations. The International Whaling Commission (IWC) has imposed bans on commercial whaling, but Japan has continued by citing scientific purposes. In recent years, Japan has shifted from the Southern Ocean to its coastal waters, ending some international hunts but maintaining whale fishing under scientific exemptions.