By The South Asia Times

TOKYO - Japan has urged Russia to provide information about the reported detention of a Japanese journalist on suspicion of espionage, raising fresh concerns about relations between the two countries, already strained by a territorial dispute and Tokyo’s sanctions against Moscow over the war in Ukraine.

Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi said Wednesday that Tokyo was seeking details about the journalist’s circumstances, health and current condition, according to Kyodo News.

“We are making requests ... for humanitarian considerations, and fair and just treatment” if the journalist has been detained, Motegi told a parliamentary committee.

He said Japan would take further measures, if necessary, to ensure the protection of its citizens.

Japan’s Foreign Ministry summoned Russian Ambassador to Japan Nikolay Nozdrev on Wednesday evening, apparently to seek information about the case.

Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) announced Tuesday that it had detained a male journalist working for Hokkaido Shimbun, a Japanese newspaper known for its coverage of the disputed islands off Japan’s northern coast.

The newspaper said the safety of its journalist was a top priority and that it was working to confirm the details.

According to Russia’s state news agency TASS, the journalist was suspected of working for Japanese intelligence and collecting information about Russia’s defence capabilities. The report said he had been transferred from Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk, the administrative centre of Sakhalin Island in Russia’s Far East, to Moscow.

TASS, citing the FSB, reported that the journalist had been placed in custody and that a criminal investigation had been opened. Russian media reports said a Moscow court had authorised his detention for two months.

Espionage in Russia carries a prison sentence of 10 to 20 years. The allegations against the journalist could not be independently verified, and no response from him to the accusations was reported.

The reported detention threatens to add to longstanding tensions between Tokyo and Moscow over the disputed islands off Hokkaido, known in Japan as the Northern Territories and in Russia as the southern Kurils.

Relations deteriorated further after Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, prompting Japan to impose sanctions against Moscow in coordination with Western countries.

The latest case also comes amid previous detentions of foreign journalists and individuals suspected by Russian authorities of espionage.

In March 2023, the FSB arrested Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich in Yekaterinburg, accusing him of attempting to obtain classified information. Gershkovich denied the charges and was sentenced to 16 years in prison in July 2024. He was released in August that year as part of a major prisoner exchange between Russia and Western countries.

Other incidents have also affected Japanese nationals and people working with Japanese media in Russia’s Far East.

In December 2019, a Kyodo News correspondent was detained in Vladivostok and released after about five hours. The news agency said he had been conducting routine reporting.

In September 2022, Russian authorities temporarily detained a Japanese consul in Vladivostok on suspicion of espionage. Tokyo denied that the diplomat had engaged in illegal activities.

More recently, a Russian man living in Khabarovsk who reportedly cooperated with Japanese media was detained on treason charges late last year. His relatives subsequently reported that they had been unable to establish contact with him.

The Japanese government has not publicly confirmed all the circumstances surrounding the latest reported detention. Motegi said Tokyo was working to establish the facts and would continue pressing Moscow for information and fair treatment.

The case could further complicate diplomatic engagement between Japan and Russia, particularly as the two countries remain divided over territorial claims, security issues and the consequences of the war in Ukraine.

For now, Tokyo’s immediate priority is to confirm the journalist’s condition and legal status, while seeking assurances that he will receive appropriate treatment under Russian law.