International Whaling Commission
Japan is also one of the world's few whaling nations. Japan was a member of the International Whaling Commission, where the government pledged that its fleets would restrict their catch to international quotas, but it attracted international opprobrium for its failure to sign an agreement placing a moratorium on catching sperm whales. As of 2019, Japan withdrew from the International Whaling Commission and now openly hunts whales in international waters.