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Whaling is the harvesting of free-roaming whales from the oceans and dates back to at least 6,000 BC. Whaling and other threats have led to at least 5 of the 13 great whales being listed as endangered. Commercial whaling is subject to a moratorium by the International Whaling Commission (IWC), however, at the 2006 IWC meeting, the St Kitts and Nevis Declaration, which protests the moratorium, was adopted by a slim majority.

It is unknown when humans began hunting whales. The earliest archaeological record of whaling is found in South Korea where carved drawings, dating back to 6,000 BC, show that Stone Age people hunted whales using boats and spears. However, over time, whaling techniques have grown more technologically sophisticated. Initially, whaling was confined to (near) coastal waters, such as the Basque fishery targeting the North Atlantic Right Whale from the 11th to 18th century and the Atlantic Arctic fishery around and in between Spitsbergen and Greenland from the 17th to the 20th century. However, after the emergence of modern whaling techniques, certain species of whale started to be seriously affected by whaling. These techniques were spurred in the 19th century by the increase in demand for whale oil, and later in the 20th century by a demand for whale meat.

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