Japan submits bill to set up National Intelligence Council
The Japanese government on Friday approved a bill to establish a National Intelligence Council during a cabinet meeting and subsequently submitted it to the Diet for consideration, Jiji Press reports.
The proposed legislation also includes the creation of a National Intelligence Bureau, which would function as the council’s secretariat. The council would be chaired by the prime minister and serve as the central body coordinating intelligence activities across the government.
According to the bill, the new institutions - expected to be launched as early as July - would be responsible for collecting and analyzing information from various ministries and agencies in order to develop a medium- to long-term national intelligence strategy.
The step follows Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s broader effort to reform Japan’s intelligence framework.
Following the council’s establishment, the Takaichi administration plans to begin detailed discussions on creating a foreign intelligence agency and introducing anti-espionage legislation. Both initiatives were included in the coalition agreement between the Liberal Democratic Party and the Japan Innovation Party.
Earlier, it was reported nearly half of Japanese people oppose lifting their country's export ban on lethal weapons.