Three anti-whaling protesters are due back in Australia some time in the next three days, weather permitting.
The West Australian men - Glen Pendlebury, Simon Peterffy and Geoffrey Tuxworth - transferred from a Japanese security vessel to the Australian customs boat, Ocean Protector, on Friday afternoon.
Attorney-General Nicola Roxon says the men should use the ride home to reflect on their actions and has urged both sides of the whaling dispute to respect the law and act calmly.
'We support peaceful protest, but dangerous action on the high seas is quite different,' she said in a statement.
'We strongly encourage both sides of this dispute to respect the law and act calmly.'
The activists, members of Forest Rescue Australia, had risked being taken to Tokyo and charged with trespassing, as was the case with New Zealander Pete Bethune in 2010.
He spent five months in jail in Japan before being handed a suspended sentence and deported.
While the trio's release was a positive outcome, Ms Roxon said the transfer had come at great expense, thought to be in the hundreds of thousands of dollars, to the Australian taxpayer.
The three had boarded the Shonan Maru 2 on Sunday, aided by anti-whaling group Sea Shepherd, scaling razor wire and spikes and sparking a diplomatic incident.
After pleas from the Australian government, Japan agreed on Tuesday to hand the men back to authorities.
Ms Roxon thanked Japan for its co-operation, but stressed the government's continued opposition to its whaling program, which Tokyo says is for scientific research.
She urged all Australians eager to see whaling stop in the Southern Ocean to support the government's efforts in the international courts, rather than acting recklessly.
The three protesters will be returned to Albany in Western Australia.
