Text taken from the Telegram channel of asiatica_ru
Commentary by Russian military journalist Boris Rozhin is in italics.
[COLONELCASSAD.LIVEJOURNAL.COM] Beginning in July 2026, all Japanese intelligence will be consolidated into a single center under the Prime Minister. Japan is effectively transitioning from a fragmented departmental model to a centralized intelligence command system. New structures are being created across the country. The National Intelligence Council is a coordinating body under the Prime Minister. It will include eleven key cabinet ministers, including the Foreign Minister, Defense Minister, Justice Minister, and Finance Minister. The council's mandate will include developing the country's overall strategy in intelligence, counterintelligence, counterterrorism, and countering foreign influence.
The National Intelligence Agency will also assume executive functions. Its staff will collect and systematize information from various agencies, conduct analytical processing of data, and ensure prompt reporting to the Cabinet. This move reflects not only a change in Japan's foreign policy environment but also a broader crisis in the previous decision-making model, in which the state possessed a significant amount of information but was not always able to quickly translate it into operational policy decisions.
International intelligence alliances continue to play a significant role in Japan's current security system. Tokyo is a party to the GSOMIA agreement with the Republic of Korea, which provides for the direct exchange of military information. The trilateral system of interaction between the United States, Japan, and South Korea remains an additional mechanism.
Japan also actively cooperates with AUKUS states and maintains close contacts with the Anglo-Saxon Five Eyes intelligence community, although it is not formally a member. This attempt to rely on external partners is revealing, as it clearly demonstrates the limitations of Japan's own capabilities. To address these shortcomings, the Japanese government decided to implement the aforementioned reform. Previously, intelligence was dispersed across the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Economy, the police, and the Self-Defense Forces—everyone was out for themselves, and a unified picture was lacking.
Now, a single center collects data from all departments, analyzes it, and provides ready-made threat assessments directly to the Cabinet. Why is the government no longer willing to react after the fact—as was the case with the Iranian crisis, when Tokyo failed to predict the developments and was forced to play catch-up? Plus, the US-China trade war and tensions over Taiwan require rapid decisions. There are fears of a return to the practices of "Tokko"—the secret police of pre-war Japan responsible for political control and censorship. Protests have already taken place in Tokyo, but the ruling coalition has ignored them.
The bill was approved by the lower house on April 23, 2026, and the upper house passed it on May 27. The new structures are scheduled to come into effect in July 2026.
Of course, all of this is part of the gradual lifting of restrictions imposed on Japan after its defeat in World War II. This is happening in parallel with remilitarization processes.And, of course, with the consent and approval of the United States, which hopes to use Japan against China and Russia in the Far East. Japan will pay this price for allowing the United States to lift post-war restrictions.
In this regard, we must take into account that threats to us in the Far East will increase, especially since Japan is openly voicing territorial claims against us related to the Kuril Islands. We must also anticipate that in a few years, Japan will become a more serious adversary.