Moscow’s FSB security service earlier said a Japanese national was arrested on the Far East island of Sakhalin – near a disputed cluster of islands – but did not name the individual.
It said the person had worked for Japanese intelligence to collect information about Russia’s defences.
Moscow and Tokyo have been locked in a territorial dispute for decades over the status of a string of islands in the Pacific Ocean, off the northeast coast of Japan and to the southwest of Russia’s Sakhalin region.
The Kuril Islands – called the Northern Territories in Japan – have been under Russia’s control since the end of World War II, when they were seized by the Soviet Union.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara said Wednesday that Japan had not been able to contact the individual and did not know about the arrest until the official announcement from Moscow.
The Hokkaido Shimbun said in a statement that it was aware of the Russian announcement but was “still confirming the details”.
“Ensuring the safety of the journalist is our top priority, and we are responding accordingly,” the newspaper said.
