"Japan Joins Key NATO Cyber Agency"
Japan recently has become the latest US ally to join NATO's Cooperative Cyber Defence Centre of Excellence (CCDCOE), in a move likely to anger Moscow. Defense Minister Seiichi Hamada stated that Japan's Ministry of Defense (JMOD) will formally join the NATO Cooperative Cyber Defence Centre of Excellence's activities following the completion of participation procedures. JMOD will continue collaborating with international partners to respond to threats in the cyber domain. Japan will join other non-NATO members, such as Australia and South Korea, as contributing participants. The CCDCOE is based in Estonia and is involved in a range of activities in cyber-defense research, training, and exercises that span four focus areas: technology, strategy, operations, and law. As such, it plays a key role in shaping NATO responses in the cyber domain, now officially recognized as a legitimate military domain and part of Article 5. The CCDCOE was founded in 2008 after a series of massive cyberattacks in Estonia the year before crippled the country for weeks. The attacks were blamed on Russian hackers.