Japan is looking to set up a land registration system similar to one introduced in Britain this year to help it identify foreign powers buying property close to military installations and sites owned by individuals subject to sanctions, according to a report by the South China Morning Post, saying there has long been concern that China, North Korea and Russia were buying property close to Japan and US military facilities, as well as key infrastructure such as airports, seaports, nuclear plants, dams and bridges.
Tokyo feels the need to do this is more acute following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and that may inconvenience Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, who has “reportedly taken advantage of a Tokyo property said to be owned by Oleg Deripaska”, a controversial oligarch close to Putin, the report said, adding that MPs want a new law similar to Britain’s Economic Crime (Transparency and Enforcement) Act to “get past shell companies” in foreign territories to identify the real owners of property.
Read the full report: South China Morning Post.
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