Cracking the Crab: Russian Spies in Japan
Deep in Japan11 Maalis

Cracking the Crab: Russian Spies in Japan

In this episode, I’m joined by Dr. James D.J. Brown, Professor of Political Science at Temple University’s Japan Campus and one of the leading experts on Russo-Japanese relations. His research focuses on the history and geopolitics between Japan and Russia, including territorial disputes, diplomacy, and security issues in Northeast Asia.


We discuss his new book, Cracking the Crab: Russian Espionage Against Japan, from Peter the Great to Richard Sorge. The book traces more than three centuries of Russian intelligence activity directed at Japan—from early explorers and castaways gathering information during the era of Japanese isolation, to the famous Soviet spy Richard Sorge and his network in Tokyo before World War II.


Along the way, Brown reveals how espionage shaped the relationship between the two countries, how spies operated in one of the world’s most closed societies, and why Japan was often seen by Russian intelligence as a “crab”—hard on the outside but vulnerable once its shell was cracked.

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