Japan's push for industry, academia, military cooperation to bring crisis: peace activist

The Japanese government's recent push for cooperation among the military, industry, and academia is a dangerous trend that will bring a crisis to Japan, the head of a Japanese civil peace organization has warned.

These concerns arise from reports that in fiscal 2026, a government funding program for basic research with potential defense applications had attracted a record 291 proposals from universities and technical colleges, more than double the number from the previous year.

The program, run by the Japanese Defense Ministry's Acquisition, Technology and Logistics Agency, has a clear financial appeal, with funding caps reaching up to 13 million yen per year or 2 billion yen over five years, depending on research objectives, according to reports.

Masami Ono, who leads a peace group, warned that such a move will lead to academic research being exploited for war.

"There is a shift towards industry-academia-military cooperation. The Ministry of Defense, in particular, is directly using its budget to provide funding. The funding for a single project has reached as high as 2 billion yen. This was unimaginable in the past. At the same time, funding originally intended for universities and researchers is continuously decreasing, while only military research is able to secure massive funding. This is no longer just a concerning issue, but has developed into a crisis," Ono said.

He further noted that the administration of Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi is trying to overturn the pacifism established in post-war Japan under the Constitution.

"What the Takaichi administration is doing right now is evident from her remarks about Taiwan. Now, the government seems to want to complete what former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe could not -- completely overturning the pacifism established in post-war Japan under the Constitution. Policies are being formulated around this direction. Japan and the U.S. are still conducting military exercises, and education, academic research, and the media are all being continuously steered in this direction," he said.

Japan's push for industry, academia, military cooperation to bring crisis: peace activist

Russia's military said more than 1,200 Ukrainian fixed-wing drones were intercepted and destroyed across multiple regions overnight into Thursday, while Ukrainian forces reported striking a Russian drone control point and repelling attacks on several fronts.

In its latest update, the Russian Ministry of Defense said 1,214 Ukrainian drones were downed across 19 regions, including Bryansk, Belgorod, and Moscow.

Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin reported on Telegram that 613 drones targeted the capital region between 20:30 Wednesday and 07:00 Thursday. Most were intercepted at long range by air defenses, with an additional 231 destroyed as they approached the city.

Meanwhile, the Russian Defense Ministry said a drone struck a dry cargo ship carrying supplies for Ukrainian forces en route to the port of Odesa early Thursday.

In retaliation, Ukrainian forces targeted energy infrastructure in the Luhansk region, cutting power to six towns and leaving over 150,000 households without electricity as of Thursday afternoon, according to Leonid Pasechnik, the Moscow-appointed head of the region. Pasechnik added that central Luhansk was hit by a massive morning strike that damaged residential buildings, a post office, the archives building, and a parking lot, though no injuries were reported.

The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine reported in its 08:00 Thursday update that its forces struck two Russian personnel concentration areas and a drone control point over the past 24 hours, while repelling attacks in several directions, including Pokrovsk. Ukrainian forces also claimed to have destroyed various Russian armored vehicles, artillery systems, ground robotic systems, and drones.

Separately, Ukraine's Air Force said Russia launched 112 attack drones beginning Wednesday evening, 97 of which were shot down or suppressed by 08:00 Thursday. The air force noted that the assault was ongoing, with several Russian drones still active in Ukrainian airspace.

Russia reports over 1,200 Ukrainian drones downed overnight as Ukraine counters with strikes