PERTH, Australia: Japan's foreign minister yesterday described Australia's threat of legal action against its controversial whaling activities as "unfortunate" but said he did not believe it would hurt ties.

"It's very unfortunate the Australian side has indicated it will take action in an international court," Katsuya Okada told reporters on the second and final day of a visit to Australia.

Okada, the first official from the new Japanese government to visit Australia, said however that the dispute should not affect relations between the two major trading partners.

Prime Minister Kevin Rudd on Friday bluntly warned Japan that it had until November to reduce its whale catch to zero, or face action in the International Court of Justice.
Australia, along with New Zealand, has consistently opposed Japan's killing of hundreds of whales each year, which it carries out via a loophole in an international moratorium that allows "lethal research".

Foreign Minister Stephen Smith said Australia remained hopeful of a diplomatic solution but he reiterated Rudd's vow that Canberra would seek redress in the ICJ if talks failed.

Okada insisted before he left Tokyo that Japan's whaling activities were legal, carried out in public waters and in accordance with international conventions. He and Rudd had a "frank discussion on whaling" in Sydney on Saturday, he said.