‘Den of spies’: why has Japan been easy prey for Russian espionage, and what is Tokyo doing about it?

The brief

After eight decades as arguably the most welcoming environment for foreign spies in the democratic world, Japan – where espionage is technically not illegal in many cases – is racing to build its own spying and counterintelligence capabilities. Reports that Japan has become a hub for Russian operatives procuring technology for the Kremlin’s war against Ukraine come as Tokyo undergoes its biggest postwar rethink of its security services. How did Japan get to be an easy target for spooks – and can it now fix the problem? Why are Japan’s spying laws and spycraft in the spotlight? Long regarded as a soft touch for international intelligence operatives, Japan experienced a…