Japan Sends Out Invitations for Whaling Talks

Japan, in a feud with Western nations about whaling, said on Friday it will meet with 12 developing states in a bid to boost its clout in the deadlocked International Whaling Commission.

The foreign ministry said it will hold a "seminar" on Monday for nations that recently joined or plan to join the IWC, which has long been divided between pro- and anti-whaling forces.

Japanese fisheries officials will also take part in the talks aimed at "obtaining understanding for Japan's position on sustainable whaling", a foreign ministry statement said.

Japan, which kills up to 1 000 whales a year, says its whaling is legal and part of its culture, and accuses anti-whaling countries of insensitivity.

Japan has clashed bitterly with Australia, whose coast guard is trailing the whalers on their annual expedition in the Antarctic Ocean and has released bloody footage of the whale slaughter.

Environmentalists accuse Japan of buying votes in the IWC by roping in countries that receive Japanese aid and have little tradition of whaling...