Tokyo , Feb 22 (AFP) Japan today insisted its whaling programme in Antarctic waters complies with international law, following a threat by Australia to take legal action against the country.

Australia&aposs Prime Minister Kevin Rudd on Friday bluntly warned Japan that it must commit by November to reducing its annual whale catch to zero or face action in the International Court of Justice.

Foreign Minister Katsuya Okada called the threat"unfortunate"after weekend talks with Rudd and Foreign Minister Stephen Smith during the first Australia visit by an official of Japan&aposs five-month-old centre-left government.

Japan&aposs top government spokesman, Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirofumi Hirano, on Monday said the international court was not the right forum for the dispute because Japan&aposs"research whaling"is legal under international law.

"It&aposs not whether we&aposll stop research whaling or not," Hirano told reporters."We&aposve been doing it under an international agreement."

He reiterated Japan&aposs position that it seeks a diplomatic solution"rather than making a case in a court."

Commercial whaling has been banned worldwide since 1986 but Japan justifies its annual hunts as lethal"scientific research"under a loophole permitted by the International Whaling Commission.

Click here for story