Why Russian spies find Japan such an easy target: ‘people are so polite’

Japan is reeling from a Russian espionage scandal that has laid bare how easily industrial secrets can slip through the country’s grasp, just as Tokyo is pushing to strengthen its laws against spying.Police in the Japanese capital referred a case to prosecutors on January 20 involving a former Russian trade official suspected of violating Japan’s laws on unfair competition.While neither he nor the Japanese employee accused of selling data for cash has been publicly named, the details of the case have rattled security watchers.The Russian suspect, believed to be an undercover agent of Moscow’s Foreign Intelligence Service working in the country’s trade mission, reportedly befriended his Japanese contact in a chance street encounter about two years ago.Posing as a Ukrainian, he invited the man for drinks to thank him for giving directions: a well-worn spycraft tactic that later evolved into a recurring exchange of meals, money and information, according to local media.Japanese 10,000 yen banknotes. The employee reportedly received about 700,000 yen in cash from a spy. Photo: EPAInvestigators say the Japanese employee twice handed over details of new machine-tool technologies developed by his company, in November 2024 and February 2025, in return for about 700,000 yen (US$4,500) in cash.