Foreign Affairs Minister Murray McCully says the Japanese Ambassador was called in to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (MFAT) today after a vessel from a Japanese whaling fleet entered New Zealand’s Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ).

“On my instructions, the Japanese Ambassador this afternoon meet with a senior MFAT official who conveyed New Zealand’s deep disappointment at the vessel’s entry into our EEZ,” Mr McCully says.

“The New Zealand Embassy in Tokyo last week made it very clear we did not want members of the Japanese whaling fleet entering our EEZ. When those wishes were ignored on Friday, I instructed the Ministry to call in the most senior representative present at the Japanese Embassy in Wellington - the Deputy Head of Mission.

“Today’s meeting with the Ambassador served to further reiterate how deeply disrespectful the vessel’s entry into our EEZ was.

“New Zealand’s strong opposition to Japanese whaling in the Southern Ocean is well known and further action may be taken,” Mr McCully says.

ENDS

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