Japan says it is still deciding what to do about a New Zealand protester who boarded a whaling ship.
The Sea Shepherd Conservation Society says Peter Bethune climbed on board the Shonan Maru 2 to make a citizen's arrest of the ship's captain for allegedly ramming its boat the Ady Gil in January.
Mr Bethune, a member of the anti-whaling group, boarded the Japanese security ship on Monday and planned to present the captain with a $3 million bill for the damage to the boat.
The Japanese-backed Institute of Cetacean Research says the crew does not have the means to return Mr Bethune to his own boat, the ABC reports.
Japan's Foreign Affairs minister Tetsuro Fukuyama says the government is still assessing the situation.
"The incident was regretful. We still haven't clarified his intention. Once we confirm this fact and the nationality of the ship he belongs to, we will post a strong protest and take appropriate action."
The situation has prompted a flurry of diplomatic talks. New Zealand's ambassador to Japan met senior officials in Tokyo on Monday, while Foreign Affairs Minister Murray McCully met Japan's ambassador in Wellington on Tuesday.
Mr McCully believes Mr Bethune knew what he was getting into, and is "not only not seeking to be removed, but is refusing to be removed" from the Japanese boat at this stage.
The minister has been told Mr Bethune is in reasonable shape, apart from a minor injury that has been attended to.
