Takaichi denies Japanese government spying in Russia

Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi denied that her government conducts espionage in Russia. She answered reporters' questions on October 15 after a Hokkaido Shimbun correspondent was detained on Sakhalin.

Asked about government espionage, Takaichi said there was no such activity. The prime minister said Japan did not yet have details of the case and identified protecting Japanese citizens as a priority.

The FSB announced the correspondent's detention on October 13. It alleged that he had collected and stored information relating to Russia's defence capabilities and was preparing to leave the country.

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said the FSB was performing its duties when asked about the detention. Japanese authorities dispute Russia's position on the case.

Japan's Foreign Ministry summoned Russian ambassador Nikolai Nozdrev on October 14 and protested the journalist's detention. The ministry said it had not received an explanation concerning the detained citizen at that point.