Japanese whaling fleet vessel Yushin Maru No. 3 (C) sprays water cannons at Sea Shepherd vessel ''Gojira'' during their clash in the Southern Ocean February 4, 2011.(Agencies)

　　Japan has suspended its annual whale hunt in the Antarctic for now after a hardline anti-whaling group gave chase to its mother ship and it may call the fleet back home, a government official said。
　　Regular attempts by Sea Shepherd Conservation Society to interrupt hunts have caused irritation in Japan, one of only three countries that now hunt whales and where the government says it is an important cultural tradition。
　　"Putting safety as a priority, the fleet has halted scientific whaling for now. We are currently considering what to do hereafter," said Tatsuya Nakaoku, an official at the Fisheries Agency。
　　When asked if Japan was considering bringing back the fleet earlier than planned, he said this remained an option and added that Japan's whaling plans were not going smoothly。
　　Representatives for Sea Shepherd were not immediately available for comment。
　　Japan introduced scientific whaling to skirt the commercial whaling ban under a 1986 moratorium, arguing it had a right to watch the whales' impact on its fishing industry。
　　The fleet, consisting of some 180 people on four vessels, is aiming to cull about 850 minke whales in Antarctic waters this season, which is scheduled to end around March。
　　In the same period last year, Japan killed 506 minke whales, well below its planned catch of around 850.
　　Last year, Australia filed a complaint against Japan at the world court in The Hague to stop Southern Ocean scientific whaling. The decision is expected to come in 2013 or later。
　　A Sea Shepherd activist was given a two-year suspended jail term by a Japanese court in July for boarding a whaling ship, while one of the group's ships sank last year after a collision with a Japanese whaling ship。
　　(Read by Lee Hannon. Lee Hannon is a journalist at the China Daily Website。)
　　日本某政府官员日前表示，由于捕鲸船队母舰受到态度强硬的反捕鲸团体的追捕，将暂停本年度在南极海域的捕鲸活动，并可能下令捕鲸船队返航。
　　海洋守护者协会常规的反捕鲸活动引发了日本民众的不满。目前全球仅有三个国家还在捕鲸，日本是其中之一，而且日本政府表示捕鲸是该国重要的文化传统。
　　日本水产厅官员中奥达也说：“为安全起见，捕鲸船队已暂停了以科研为目的的猎捕。我们正考虑今后怎么办。”
　　在被问及日本是否会考虑提前结束捕鲸时，他表示有这种可能，还说日本的捕鲸计划一直不顺。
　　海洋守护者协会的代表还没有对此发表评论。
　　日本借科研之名捕鲸，绕开了1986年禁止商业捕鲸的禁令，辩解称有权观察鲸鱼“对日本渔业的影响。”
　　暂停捕鲸的船队由4只捕鲸船组成，约有180名船员。船队原计划本季在南海海域捕杀850头小须鲸，一直作业至三月。
　　日本去年同期共捕杀506头小须鲸，远低于原计划的850头。
　　澳大利亚于去年向海牙国际法庭起诉日本，要求其停止在南极海域的“科学捕鲸”。宣判结果预计将在2013年或更晚时间才能知晓。
　　去年7月，日本一家法庭判处海洋守护者协会的一位环保人士两年监禁，缓期执行，罪名是擅自登上捕鲸船只。去年，因与一艘日本捕鲸船相撞，该团体的一艘舰船沉没。

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