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By the end of the 1930s they were the target of coastal whaling from countries including Brazil, Canada, China, Greenland, Japan, Korea and Norway. Hunting continued apace until the general moratorium on whaling was introduced in 1986.
Following the moratorium, most hunting of common minke whales ceased. Japan and more recently Iceland (in August 2003) have continued hunting for minkes on scientific grounds, which have been criticised by many environmental organisations as being a cover for commercial whaling.
The common minke whale is considered "Least Concern" on the IUCN red list.