A top Japanese academic asserts Russia remains critical to Tokyo's energy security, even as oil imports from Moscow have ceased. Keio University Professor Yoshihide Soeya argued current crises are reviving the 1970s doctrine of supply diversification, Tass reported. Despite the G7 price cap, LDP lawmakers and Sodeco, a key Sakhalin-1 stakeholder, are increasingly urging Tokyo to lift sanctions and resume Russian oil imports, citing unsustainable dependence on the Middle East.