Japan as the ‘Sixth Eye’: Can Tokyo Keep Shared Information Safe?
Japan’s joining of the “Five Eyes” has gained traction in recent months due to former Japanese Defence Minister Kōno Tarō advocating for Japan’s formal entry. Japan’s official participation in the intelligence-sharing grouping would enable Tōkyō to expand intelligence exchanges with other states beyond the US and thereby obtain highly classified information. However, Tōkyō’s ambition to become the “Sixth Eye” presents some key challenges that necessitate being tackled.
Japan and the “Five Eyes”
The Five Eyes (FVEY) intelligence alliance has its origins in the UKUSA Agreement signed at the end of World War II, which was subsequently extended to include Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. The FVEY agreement is believed to be the most comprehensive joint surveillance effort in history and the text of the secret agreement was only disclosed in 2010. Briefly stated, the alliance operates interception, acquisition, analysis, and decryption activities, which are shared among the members’ agencies by default. This includes unlawful global surveillance programs that breach the privacy of citizens through big tech platforms. The FVEY intelligence agencies can access top-secret files via their exclusive networks. Former NSA contractor Edward Snowden additionally disclosed that the grouping also cooperates with other countries, thereby forming other two groups: the “Nine Eyes” and the “Fourteen Eyes.” [1]
While the purpose of the original agreement between the U.S. and the U.K. was to streamline the intelligence-sharing process to better tackle global threats, namely the Soviet Union[2], the Five Eyes' recent joint statement on Hong Kong explicitly condemns China’s expansionism. Beijing’s hegemonic intentions along the India-China border as well as the East and South China Seas, and the wider Indo-Pacific region, are causes of concern for both the FVEY alliance and Japan. Indeed, it is worthy of note that Japan’s interest in joining the FVEY comes in times of a formation of a US-led balancing against China (the QUAD).
In an interview in August, former Japanese Defence Minister Kōno Tarō expressed grave concerns about China’s maritime activities and advocated for Japan’s closer cooperation with the Five Eyes “to the extent of it being called the ‘Six Eyes’.” On the occasion of the July meeting among defense ministers from the Five Eyes alliance, now Minister for Administrative Reform and Regulatory Reform, Kōno Tarō’s proposal concerning Japan’s joining of the intelligence grouping was positively welcomed especially by British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who stated that “We are a country with common values, and Japan can almost be called the sixth eye’.” In 2018, American historian Arthur Herman of the Hudson Institute has indeed argued that Japan has de facto membership and should therefore officially join the FVEY grouping. Notwithstanding, Tōkyō has yet to send a formal request to join.
Japan’s addition to the Five Eyes has been generally considered a logical progression. Indeed, Japan has been informally cooperating with the Five Eyes since the US Occupation of Japan (1947–1952). During the Cold War, the US-Japan alliance was the linchpin of America’s strategy of containment against the Soviet Union and has remained the cornerstone of the US’s “hub and spokes” alliance system, along with the US-South Korea Alliance, vis-à-vis the North Korean contingent. Due to Japan’s post-war constitutional constraints on the use of force, since 1960, the US-Japan Security Treaty has granted Washington the right to maintain military bases on Japanese territory in exchange for defending Japan in the case of attacks.
In 2016, Japan additionally concluded an intelligence-sharing pact (GSOMIA) with the United States and South Korea, which enabled synchronized alignment among the three by sharing information on North Korea’s nuclear and missile activities. In the same year, the Abe administration revised Japan’s security laws building upon a July 2014 Cabinet decision, which allowed Japan, inter alia, to enhance cooperation among agencies, including information sharing. In July of this year, as reported by Nikkei Asia, the revision of standards for the legislation has laid the foundations for expanding the scope of Japan’s intelligence-sharing by allowing, inter alia, the exercise of the right to collective self-defense as well as the supply of fuel and ammunition, along with secret data, to foreign militaries in situations threatening the survival of the nation.
In fact, in November, Japan and Australia signed a historic defense pact (RAA), which provides a legal framework for enhanced cooperation between Japanese and Australian forces, thereby expediting the share of information and joint exercises vis-à-vis China’s activities in the Indo-Pacific. This year, Australia additionally rejoined the QUAD’s Exercise Malabar, which had not participated in since 2007, due to Chinese economic pressures that led to the withdrawal of Canberra. Japan has also broadened cooperation with the U.K., India, and France in order to maintain confidential defense data secrets. For instance, joint military exercises among Japan, France, and the U.S. have already been scheduled for May 2021.
From “Five Eyes” to “Six Eyes”: Mutual Benefits
Japan’s joining of the Five Eyes would allow the members to capitalize on respective intelligence-gathering on mainland China, Russia, North Korea, the East and South China Seas, and Southeast Asia. Furthermore, economic and strategic partnerships among the members would be strengthened and issues beyond security could be jointly tackled. After Brexit, this is also one of the reasons why the U.K. has been enthusiastic about Japanese potential membership and officially issued an invitation for Japan to join as the Sixth Eye.
Reportedly, the Five Eyes states are constrained by their small membership (Pfluke 2019). In spite of their global reach, intelligence updates are constantly necessary to address global issues. Therefore, expanding the strictly “Anglosaxon” membership would be advantageous for the FVEY Alliance vis-à-vis China’s rise. However, being welcomed as a formal member requires, in primis, a strong diplomatic and economic relationship, shared common values, and deep trust [3]. In this respect, Japan appears to fulfill the requirements, as a 2019 US congressional report classifies Japan as a trusted partner. Above all, data protection is the main deciding factor.
Japan’s Issues with Data Protection
Although Japan has the world’s widest intelligence-gathering structure, along with being greatly skilled at intelligence gathering, especially by intercepting signals (SIGINT) through radio stations, experts have consistently underscored Japan’s need to reinforce data protection. Indeed, as also reported by Nikkei Asia, the Japanese government’s major challenge is to establish an effective system for safeguarding intelligence and classified information.
Obtaining key information at early stages could make a difference in situations of danger. Until the EU’s adequacy decision on Japan, in January 2019, Japan’s data protection levels were not deemed on par with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). Japan has reciprocated by recognizing the EU's adequate protection regime under the Act on the Protection of Personal Information (APPI). However, APPI only covers the private sector as the regulation applies to all “business operators” processing personal information for business purposes.
Furthermore, Japan’s cybersecurity status cannot be compared with that of the Five Eyes yet. Indeed, the Japanese government has not been privy to important information in the past, as demonstrated by Japan’s response to the Five Eyes announcement of having identified a connection between the Chinese Ministry of State Security and the APT10 group of hackers in February 2019. This might be due to the fact that amid growing cyberattacks, Japan’s digital security has been found lacking. Japanese businesses have increasingly been targeted by cyberattacks as best exemplified by the cyberattack on Mitsubishi Electric Corporation’s servers in January. This led to the suspected leak of information regarding Japan’s Self-Defense Forces (SDF) and the personal data of around 8,122 individuals. In 2019, the Strait Times reported that, in Japan, cyberattacks have increased by nearly four times since 2015.
In an interview with the Japan Times, Japanese cyberdefense expert Toshio Nawa appraised that Japan significantly fails to correctly assess cyber threats. He also added that, while the FVEY countries have established security agencies such as the Australian Signals Directorate, the US Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, the British National Cyber Security Centre, the Canadian Centre for Cyber Security, and New Zealand’s National Cyber Security Centre, Japan has yet to elaborate laws to adequately address cybersecurity issues.
Most notably, Japan requires a security clearance system that allows only authorized individuals to access classified information despite the 2020 amendments to the APPI expanding, inter alia, the type of data covered to include biometric data (fingerprints and facial recognition) and Personal Identifier Codes (driver’s licenses or passport numbers). A security clearance is especially important to keep Japanese companies competitive in the global market. In fact, the Tama University Center’s director, Toshifumi Kokubun explains that “Japanese companies, who do not have personnel with security clearance […] will be seen as too risky to share data with.” Hence, Tōkyō has resolved to increase its defense budget to acquire cross-domain skills in new fields, such as cyberspace. Furthermore, in October, both Japan and India called for tech companies to propose solutions for law enforcement to access end-to-end encrypted communications.
Japan’s restrictions on wiretapping could also hinder Japan’s joining the Five Eyes, as the alliance notably monitors telephone and internet-based conversations by covert means (ECHELON). Thus, sceptics of the Five Eyes’ secret programs do not favour a formal joining of Japan as data privacy must be safeguarded. Overall, while the world waits for Japan to join the Five Eyes, Japan needs to further develop counter-intelligence capabilities which are crucial to the intelligence process itself. Ultimately, Japan cannot afford to be considered a nation that cannot keep shared information safe.
Notes
[1] The “Nine Eyes” comprise the FVEY plus Denmark, Norway, the Netherlands and France, while the “Fourteen Eyes” adds to the Nine Eyes Italy, Spain, Germany, Belgium and Sweden.
[2] Pfluke, Corey. “A history of the Five Eyes Alliance: Possibility for reform and additions” Comparative Strategy 38.4 (2019): 302–315.
[3] This last point induced both France and Germany to reject the FVEY’s proposal to formally enter the alliance.
