NYT: Russian spies smuggle components for the Russian army from Japan

Russian spies are smuggling components for the Russian army from Japan. All because Japan has weak espionage legislation and a strong technology industry.

This is reported by The New York Times, citing Western intelligence officials, government documents, and sources in several countries.

After Russiaʼs full-scale invasion of Ukraine began, dozens of Russian intelligence officers, expelled by Western countries, have moved to Japan. NYT sources say that a GRU military intelligence unit, the so-called 20th Directorate, operates in Tokyo.

Posing as diplomats or businessmen, the spies buy or steal items that are then smuggled through third countries to Russia. Sources say the operation is led by 49-year-old Maxim Filchenkov, who works undercover as an employee of the Russian airline Aeroflot. He is involved in searching for equipment, among other things.

Russian agents also use a network of intermediary companies to deliver goods to Russia. One such company, the publication names Japanʼs Proco Air, which positions itself as a "bridge between Japan and Russia". However, the company claims that it only transports permitted goods.

• According to Ukrainian authorities, about 90% of Russian missiles and drones contain Japanese components. In particular, after the Russian strike on a residential building in Kyiv in May, investigators found a Japanese computer module in an X-101 missile, which was banned from being exported to Russia.
• Ukraine has repeatedly provided Japan with evidence that its components are used in Russian weapons. At the same time, Tokyo, while supporting Ukraine, has been slow to respond to the threat due to its own legislation — Japan does not have a separate foreign intelligence service.

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