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Officials are suspected of using satellite equipment installed on the roofs of Russian diplomatic buildings to spy on targets in Vienna...
Austria's Foreign Ministry confirmed on Monday that Vienna has expelled three Russian diplomats on suspicion of espionage. According to Austrian authorities, the officials in question are suspected of carrying out espionage operations using satellite equipment installed on the roofs of Russian diplomatic buildings in Vienna.
In mid-April, the Russian ambassador to Vienna, Andrey Yuryevich Grozov, was summoned to the Austrian Foreign Ministry and asked to lift the officials' immunity. After Moscow refused to comply with the request, Vienna took steps to expel the three diplomats, who have since left the country, according to local media reports.
“Espionage is a security issue for Austria,” Foreign Minister Beate Meinl-Reisinger told Politico, adding that “this government has made a policy change and is taking consistent action against it. We have made this clear to the Russian side, also in relation to the ‘antenna forest’ at the Russian mission.”
Meinl-Reisinger said it was "unacceptable" for officials to use their diplomatic immunity to carry out espionage operations in Austria and said the country would take steps to tighten the espionage provision in the criminal code to curb the illegal activity.
As a result of its proximity to the Iron Curtain, Vienna was a hotbed for foreign spies throughout the second half of the 20th century. Since the country's criminal code only punishes acts of espionage directly targeting Austria, it continues to be seen as a relatively safe haven for intelligence agents.
Since the Kremlin’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine began, Austria has revoked the diplomatic status of 14 Russian officials who were found to have “engaged in acts incompatible with their diplomatic status.” However, about 220 staff members remain at Russian diplomatic missions in the country, according to ORF.
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