Vienna became a center for russian spies in Europe after the invasion began

In Austria, unlike other European countries, the number of russian diplomats has hardly decreased since russia's invasion of Ukraine. As a result, Vienna has become a center for russian spies operating in Europe.

Source. This was reported by the Financial Times.

Austria is home to several major international organizations, including the International Atomic Energy Agency, OPEC, and various UN agencies. However, the country's laws do not regulate intelligence activities that are not directed against the Austrian government.

"If, for example, russia were spying on Germany, one of our closest partners, on Austrian territory, we could not do anything about it because it is not 'to the detriment of Austria'," said Stephanie Krisper, a member of the Austrian parliament from the liberal NEOS party.

According to the FT, after russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, European countries expelled more than 400 russian spies who were working under diplomatic cover. Austria has so far expelled only four. More than 180 accredited russian diplomats remain in the country. According to the newspaper, at least a third of them use diplomatic cover for intelligence gathering activities. In addition, many spies work in the country illegally due to the lack of control.

At the same time, russia also uses Vienna for large-scale electronic intelligence. The roofs of every russian diplomatic building in the city are covered with radars, domes, and canopies that likely hide surveillance devices. Some of these systems have been installed in recent months.

Western intelligence officials and diplomats are bewildered by the situation in Austria. "It's like the Wild West. It's ridiculous how much people get away with here," one Western diplomat told the newspaper. Due to the spying situation, Austria has already been excluded from a number of intelligence-sharing agreements.

This year, the country's three largest opposition parties jointly supported legislative changes that would criminalize espionage in Austria against foreign authorities. So far, however, the government has twice suspended a vote on the issue in parliament, explaining that the law change requires more time for consultations between departments.

"Austria's position in Europe is shameful at the moment, but the government can always say that no law is being violated. If they were to change the law, they would have to try to enforce it, and the fact is that they probably can't. That's even more shameful," a Western intelligence official told the FT.

Background. In 2022-2023, Western countries expelled more than 600 russian diplomats, including on suspicion of espionage. Germany, France, and Poland expelled more than 40 diplomats, Estonia, Slovakia, and Slovenia – more than 30. Bulgaria has expelled 82 Russian diplomats since the beginning of the war.