{"text":[[{"start":10.68,"text":"Russia has detained a Japanese journalist on espionage charges, the first arrest of a foreign reporter in the country since the release of Wall Street Journal correspondent Evan Gershkovich in 2024."}],[{"start":22.38,"text":"The arrest comes at a time of deteriorating relations between Moscow and Tokyo."}],[{"start":27.08,"text":"Japan’s Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi in August rebuked Vladimir Putin for visiting an island disputed by the two countries. Russia’s leader has criticised Tokyo for joining sanctions imposed after his full-scale invasion of Ukraine and for identifying Moscow as a “primary threat” in its military doctrine."}],[{"start":46.2,"text":"Russia’s FSB security service on Tuesday said the arrested journalist was a correspondent for Japan’s Hokkaido Shimbun newspaper and was suspected of spying for a Japanese intelligence agency. The arrest follows a pattern of Russian authorities detaining journalists on what rights groups have denounced as politically motivated charges."}],[{"start":65.46,"text":"The journalist was detained in Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk, a city on Russia’s far-eastern island of Sakhalin, the FSB said. He was transferred to a pre-trial detention centre in Moscow, where a court authorised his detention for two months."}],[{"start":79.62,"text":"An espionage conviction carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison under Russian law."}],[{"start":85,"text":"The FSB alleged the reporter had been “collecting and storing information related to the country’s defence capabilities for use against Russia’s security”. It said he had gathered data on the number of people from the Kuril Islands who were taking part in the war in Ukraine."}],[{"start":99.48,"text":"Hokkaido Shimbun said it was aware of Russia’s announcement that a reporter had been detained on suspicion of espionage and said that it was verifying the details. It added that ensuring the reporter’s safety was its top priority."}],[{"start":112.72,"text":"Putin in August visited the disputed island of Iturup, known as Etorofu in Japan, reigniting a territorial dispute that dates back to the end of the second world war, when the Soviet Union seized islands in what it calls the Southern Kurils. Tokyo calls the four disputed islands the Northern Territories."}],[{"start":130.36,"text":"Takaichi said Putin’s visit had “further worsened sentiment towards Russia in Japan and made it more difficult to restore relations over the medium- to long-term”."}],[{"start":139.48,"text":"During his trip and in subsequent public comments, Putin lamented what he said was a deterioration in Tokyo’s attitude towards Moscow."}],[{"start":146.68,"text":"“We are concerned about Japan’s plans for militarisation. We are concerned about policies aimed at creating military-political blocs in the region,” he said at Russia’s flagship foreign policy conference this month."}],[{"start":159.24,"text":"Relations have worsened further in recent months, with Japan imposing fresh sanctions on Russia and conducting large-scale military exercises with the US and Australia near Russia’s far-eastern borders in September."}],[{"start":171.88,"text":"Moscow last week demanded the extradition of Tomoko Akane, the Japanese president of the International Criminal Court, and eight other officials. The Netherlands-based court has issued an arrest warrant for Putin for alleged war crimes in Ukraine."}],[{"start":185.4,"text":"The FSB released footage of the detention that showed three officers handcuffing a man lying on the floor of what appeared to be a hotel room. Subsequent shots showed a young man being questioned, put on a plane and brought to Moscow’s Lefortovo district court."}],[{"start":200.36,"text":"Dressed in a black jumper, the man was seen standing inside a metal cage in the courtroom as a digitally disguised voice read out the espionage charges."}],[{"start":208.76,"text":"Russia has not detained a foreign correspondent since the release of Gershkovich and other political prisoners in August 2024. Gershkovich, a US citizen, was held in Russia for more than a year on espionage charges that he and The Wall Street Journal have always denied."}],[{"start":225.52,"text":"The prisoner swap in which Gershkovich was released also included Alsu Kurmasheva, a dual Russian-American citizen and journalist for Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, who had travelled to Russia in 2023 to visit her mother."}],[{"start":238.76,"text":"She was accused of spreading false information, charges she denied. Amnesty International has described the charges against her and Gershkovich as politically motivated."}],[{"start":248.76,"text":"At least two Russian journalists who contributed to Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty have since been detained and charged. In 2024, a dual Russian-Israeli citizen who had worked with AP and Deutsche Welle was arrested for allegedly producing videos for the YouTube channel of Alexei Navalny, the late Russian opposition leader. He was later sentenced to five and a half years in prison."}],[{"start":269.96,"text":"A Japanese journalist was detained on suspicion of espionage in late 2019. The case ended with his expulsion from Russia."}],[{"start":283.9,"text":""}]],"url":"https://audio.ftcn.net.cn/album/a_1791943289_6577.mp3"}