Iceland says to allow whaling for another 5 years

Iceland, in crisis after its ruling coalition collapsed, ended a 20-year ban on commercial whaling in August 2006, issuing quotas that ran through August 2007. After a temporary halt, the country resumed whaling in May last year.

"Today the Minister of Fisheries and Agriculture published a regulation setting a quota for the next five years," the fisheries and agriculture ministry said in a statement.

The ministry said the total allowable takes would be according to recommendations of the Marine Research Institute.

Iceland is in crisis after the collapse of its ruling coalition and the resignation of its prime minister due to the effects of the global credit crunch. Talks are under way to form a new government.

Many countries and environmental groups oppose whaling, saying stocks are low after decades of over-hunting that only ended with the 1986 moratorium by the International Whaling Commission.

Icelandic supporters of whaling have said they seek to cultivate tradition in a responsible way.

Conservationists have argued that the whale-watching industry is equally, if not more, lucrative than hunting the animals.

(Reporting by Omar R. Valdimarsson via Stockholm newsroom; editing by Elizabeth Piper)