Japan creates first centralized foreign intelligence agency

Japan is establishing its first centralized foreign intelligence agency since World War II, a major national security reform aimed at countering espionage, cyberattacks, and foreign influence operations from countries including China, Russia, and North Korea. The legislation, which passed Japan's parliament in May, creates a new National Intelligence Council and a National Intelligence Bureau, centralizing a system long fragmented among various ministries.

Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, who took office in October 2025, has described the law as a first step toward strengthening the country's espionage capabilities. The reform transforms the existing Cabinet Intelligence and Research Office into a more powerful, centralized body designed to improve coordination, reduce interagency barriers, and ensure intelligence better meets policymakers' needs. Officials have privately consulted Western allies, including the United States, Australia, and Germany, for advice on technology, staffing, and intelligence-sharing as they build the new agency.

The push for a centralized intelligence service stems from a perceived increase in regional threats and vulnerabilities within Japan's current...