"It is not good to leave because we are against" an International Whaling Commission (IWC) call on Japan to stop its scientific whaling programme, Koizumi told reporters.

He made the comment after meeting with Fisheries Agency head Hiroyuki Kinoshita.

"I instructed him that we should make efforts so that our opinions are accepted," Koizumi said.

The IWC, at the annual conference in Berlin last month, called on Japan to stop its scientific whaling programme and asked Iceland not to start the controversial practice, which critics say is commercial whaling in disguise.

The call was proposed by a clutch of anti-whaling countries including Australia, Britain, France, Germany and the United States and agreed by a close 24 votes to 21.

However, it is not legally binding as scientific whaling permits are issued by governments and not the IWC.

Whaling for research is exempted from a global moratorium on whaling which has been in place since 1986.

Japan allows the killing of up to 700 whales a year for what it says is scientific research.

TERRA.WIRE