STORY: :: Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese tells Russia to 'back off'
:: after Moscow accused Canberra of inciting 'anti-Russian paranoia'
:: for charging a Russian-born couple with espionage
:: Brisbane, Australia
:: 13 July, 2024
"Russia can get the message - back off. Russia engages in espionage here and around the world. Russia has no credibility. And the message to Russia is, how about you get out of Ukraine and stop the illegal and immoral war that you're engaged in. And how about you try to stop interfering in domestic affairs of other sovereign nations. This is a country that has no respect for international law, and they should be regarded with contempt, which is what I have for them."
"I think our allies that we work very closely with, particularly our Five Eyes partners will take comfort in the fact that we have caught these people (Korolevs). They've been rounded up here in Brisbane, and they will be charged as appropriate."
Spouses Kira and Igor Korolev have Russian and Australian citizenship, and were arrested on charges of working to access material related to Australia's national security, though no significant compromise was identified, the Australian Federal Police said on Friday (July 12).
The Russian embassy in Canberra said in a statement to Russia's RIA state news agency on Friday that "the purpose of this campaign is obvious - to raise a new wave of anti-Russian paranoia here, distract Australians from the numerous failures of the policies of the ruling Labor Party".
Albanese, speaking to reporters on Saturday, added that Russia needed to "stop interfering in domestic affairs of other sovereign nations".
