Australia’s Albanese urges Russia to ‘stand back’ as war of words over spy couple escalates

The couple, who are Australian citizens, were arrested on suspicion of attempting to access material related to Australia’s national security. However, no significant interference was found, the Australian Federal Police said on Friday.

“There is widespread information about the arrest of the couple Kira and Igor Korolev, who have Russian and Australian citizenship, in Brisbane on charges of attempted espionage for Russia,” the Russian embassy in the capital Canberra said in a statement to Russian state news agency RIA on Friday.

“The purpose of this campaign is obvious: to stir up a new wave of anti-Russian paranoia and distract Australians from the numerous failures of the ruling Labor Party’s policies,” the embassy said.

Speaking to reporters on Saturday, Albanese said Russia must “stop interfering in the internal affairs of other sovereign states.”

“Russia can understand the message: stand back. Russia is spying here and around the world,” Albanese said in Brisbane, the capital of Queensland state, according to a transcript.

Australia, one of the largest non-NATO donors to Ukraine since the Russian invasion in 2022, announced a 250 million Australian dollar ($170 million) military aid package for Kyiv at a NATO summit in Washington on Thursday.

The embassy has asked Australian authorities for written information on the couple’s situation and is considering “appropriate measures of consular assistance,” the Australian Broadcasting Corp. reported on Saturday.

The embassy did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

According to court documents, the Korolevs appeared in the Brisbane Magistrates Court on Friday. They were each accused of preparing an espionage offence, which carries a maximum sentence of 15 years in prison. The charge is the first under a law introduced in 2018.

They did not apply for bail and remained in custody until their next appearance on September 20, media reported.

The 40-year-old wife, an information systems technician in the Australian army, traveled to Russia and instructed her husband in Australia to log into her official account to access defense materials, police said.

Canberra supplied defence equipment to Kyiv, banned the export of aluminium ore to Russia and imposed sanctions on more than 1,000 Russian individuals and companies.