Australia Charges Soldier With Spying for Russia

Facts

• Russian-born Australian citizens — Kira Korolev, an Australian army private, and her husband, Igor Korolev — have been arrested and each charged with spying for Russia.¹
• The couple, the first suspected spies to be charged under revamped espionage laws enacted in 2018, have been accused of accessing Australian Defence Force (ADF) material to share with Russian authorities.²
• According to the police, Kira traveled to Russia last year while on leave from the ADF and allegedly instructed Igor to access her work account and send classified national security information to her.³
• If convicted, the defendants can be imprisoned for up to 15 years. However, if evidence is found that any information was handed to Russia, the charges could be upgraded and carry a maximum jail term of 25 years or life.⁴
• Australian Federal Police Commissioner Reece Kershaw said that investigators had so far found 'no significant compromise' of military secrets. The pair, holders of Russian passports, were arrested at their home near Brisbane on Thursday.⁵

Sources: ¹CBC, ²BBC News, ³Sky News, ⁴Associated Press and ⁵Time.

Narratives

• Pro-Russia narrative, as provided by TASS. The arrest of two imaginary Russian spies is another Australian attempt to stoke anti-Russian paranoia. The Australian authorities have found no evidence that the couple accessed or shared sensitive material related to national security. Canberra should tighten its security vetting for military personnel before pointing fingers at the Kremlin.
• Anti-Russia narrative, as provided by Guardian. Once again, Russia has been caught trying to spy on and interfere in Australia's domestic affairs. A country that has no respect for international law and has deployed spies across the world is ironically accusing a sovereign nation of inciting anti-Russian paranoia. Australian agencies will thwart all attempts to dent its security and defense.

Predictions