Putin’s spies have been hiding in plain sight in Japan — now the US is helping clean house

Russian intelligence operatives have been quietly working out of Tokyo for years, using Japan as a channel to buy weapons components, dodge Western sanctions, and ship the material home to supply Russia’s war in Ukraine, according to a New York Times investigation.

The stakes are staggering: Roughly 90% of Russian missiles and drones contain Japanese components, according to Ukrainian government estimates.

‘We have a sense of crisis about this situation.’

The investigation identifies a Russian military intelligence unit called the “20th Directorate” as the network behind the effort. Its Tokyo station is reportedly run out of an office for Russian state airline Aeroflot near the headquarters of Japan’s National Police Agency.

The alleged operative in charge, Maksim Filchenkov, is a veteran Russian intelligence officer using a cover