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JAPAN resumed its slaughter of whales in the Southern Ocean late yesterday - and today the Asian superpower stands condemned by the world.

Officers aboard the Australian Customs vessel Oceanic Viking witnessed the killing of whales- believed to be minke - about 3pm (AEST).

Witnesses reported seeing up to five whales harpooned and then hauled on to the factory ship Nisshin Maru.

The blatant snub to world sentiment comes just days after Greenpeace and Sea Shepherd activists retreated from the killing grounds to refuel.

And it came just hours after Japan`s Institute of Cetacean Research issued a statement claiming whalers had been unfairly criticised.

"The Japanese scientific whaling program in the Southern Ocean will pursue its original research plan after the departure of both Greenpeace and Sea Shepherd back to Australia following weeks of dangerous and illegal harassment," the statement said.

The group then launched a broadside at the media for campaigning against the slaughter. When asked to defend the notion that harpooning whales could be called "research", institute spokesman Glenn Inwood said: "I`m not going to go through the results of our research with The Daily Telegraph."

The Federal Government was clearly shocked that Japan had moved to kill more whales just hours before Foreign Minister Stephen Smith met his counterpart in Tokyo last night.

"It`s extremely disappointing that the Japanese fleet has now resumed whaling," a spokesman for Mr Smith said.

"Australia`s relationship with Japan is strong but this is one issue on which we fundamentally disagree.

"Our starting point and finishing point is that the Australian people want to see an end to the slaughter of whales."

Whaling operations were interrupted for three weeks while protest groups Greenpeace and Sea Shepherd watched over the fleet.

Crew aboard the Oceanic Viking last night confirmed they had taken photo and video documentation of yesterday`s harpooning and transfer of at least five whales from whale chasers to the factory ship Nisshin Maru.

But Japanese whalers proved undeterred by the Australian surveillance, wasting no time in resuming their hunt to fullfil their quota of more than 935 whales.

In what was likely to provoke an icy reception upon Mr Smith`s arrival in Tokyo, a spokeswoman for the Japanese Foreign Ministry said Foreign Minister Masahiko Koumura undoubtedly knew the whaling had resumed.

"It`s distressing to hear that Japan has begun to kill whales in the Southern Ocean against the wishes of the Australian Government and world opinion," Home Affairs Minister Bob Debus said last night.

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