Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi on Monday pledged to strengthen the country’s intelligence capabilities, citing what she described as an increasingly complex and challenging international environment.
Takaichi made the remarks after chairing the first meeting of a 17-member expert panel tasked with examining ways to strengthen Japan’s intelligence functions. She stressed the importance of developing a comprehensive “National Intelligence Strategy” to improve the country’s ability to identify and respond to emerging threats.
“It is extremely important for our country to swiftly and accurately grasp threats that could potentially jeopardize our national interests, as well as the lives and safety of our citizens,” Takaichi said in a post on X.
The prime minister said Japan faces a range of security challenges that require the country to improve how it gathers, analyzes and uses intelligence.
Among the threats she identified were cyberattacks, the illicit leakage of advanced technologies involving foreign intelligence operatives and the spread of disinformation.
According to Takaichi, Japan must improve coordination among different areas of government and national security because threats increasingly cross traditional boundaries.
“It is difficult to grasp the full picture without integrating and analyzing information gathered across multiple domains, such as diplomacy, defense, public security, the economy, and technology,” she said.
The expert panel includes representatives from academia, media and business, alongside government officials. Its membership reflects the government's intention to draw on expertise from different sectors as it considers reforms to Japan's intelligence system.
New Intelligence Institutions
Japan has already begun restructuring its intelligence framework.
The government established the National Intelligence Council in July, with Takaichi serving as its head, as well as the National Intelligence Bureau secretariat. The move followed legislation that was passed in May.
The institutions are intended to improve the coordination and analysis of intelligence collected by different parts of the Japanese government.
Takaichi's administration is also pursuing plans to establish an independent intelligence agency modeled in part on the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) of the United States.
The proposed agency is expected to become operational by March 2028, according to the information provided.
The plans represent a broader effort by the Japanese government to develop stronger intelligence capabilities as Tokyo responds to changes in the country's security environment.
Focus on Technology and Information Security
Takaichi's comments placed particular emphasis on technological and information-related threats.
Cyberattacks and the unauthorized transfer of advanced technologies are increasingly regarded by governments as national security concerns. The prime minister also highlighted disinformation, which can spread rapidly through digital platforms and complicate efforts by authorities to assess information and emerging threats.
Her call for greater integration of intelligence from diplomacy, defense, public security, economics and technology suggests that the government wants intelligence assessments to draw on a wider range of information rather than operate through isolated government agencies.
The expert panel will therefore have a role in considering how information can be collected, shared and analyzed more effectively across government.
Further Reforms Expected
Takaichi acknowledged that Japan's efforts to strengthen its intelligence functions are still at an early stage.
“Efforts to strengthen intelligence functions have only just begun, and moving forward, we need to continue deliberations on further intelligence reforms,” she said.
The government's planned National Intelligence Strategy is expected to provide a broader framework for these reforms and clarify how Japan intends to organize its intelligence capabilities in response to security, technological and economic challenges.
The initiative comes as Japan continues to review its national security structures amid concerns about cyber threats, technology security, foreign intelligence activities and the growing role of information warfare.
For Takaichi's administration, the immediate task is to determine how existing intelligence institutions can work more closely together while developing new capabilities.
The 17-member panel's deliberations will contribute to that process as the government works toward a more integrated national intelligence system and considers the establishment of an independent intelligence agency by March 2028.
