Captain of Protest Vessel Claims Spy Trawler is Shadowing Him

The Japanese government is thought to have sent a large ocean-going trawler into the Southern Ocean near Antarctica to track one of the environmental activist ships trying to stop a whale hunt.

Captain Paul Watson, on board the Sea Shepherd conservation society's vessel, the Steve Irwin, said yesterday by satellite phone that the drag trawler Fukoyoshi Maru No 68 was shadowing his ship.

"It has no fishing gear on board and appears to have more electronic gear than normal for a fishing vessel. It is not part of the whaling fleet of seven ships. It is apparently reporting our position to the Japanese fleet."

The cat and mouse game between the whalers and the conservationists continued with Greenpeace on the heels of the Nisshin Maru factory vessel which is understood to be closing on its four harpoon ships.

But relations between Sea Shepherd and Greenpeace appeared to have deteriorated further with Greenpeace again refusing to relay the position of the Japanese harpoon boats to the Steve Irwin.

"We asked Greenpeace again yesterday for assistance with the coordinates to enable Sea Shepherd to find the fleet but it was denied again. We were told that the Greenpeace membership was opposed to Greenpeace providing assistance to Sea Shepherd," Watson said.

He also accused the Australian government of deliberately leading the Steve Irwin away from the fleet to pick up the two activists who had been held on board one of the Japanese harpoon ships for two days. They were reunited with the Steve Irwin early yesterday.

"Australian Customs deliberately led us away from the [Japanese] fleet and Greenpeace is guarding the coordinates like the crown jewels to prevent us re-locating the whalers. With 'allies' like them it is becoming increasing difficult to keep the Japanese fleet from killing whales.

Greenpeace declined to comment on the row between the two organizations. "We have kept the factory ship and the rest of the fleet out of action for days now," said expedition leader Karli Thomas. "No whales have been killed in that time."