SYDNEY: Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said Thursday that they would block a new Russian embassy near the Parliament House, citing threats to national security.
AFP reported that Moscow currently holds the lease for land near the Australian Parliament in the country’s capital Canberra, where it intends to construct its new embassy compound.
Australia to Block New Russian Embassy Near Parliament: Prime Minister
The government of Australia has been attempting in vain to end the long-lasting lease contract, which was first signed in 2008. Anthony Albanese said that after other legal paths had failed, new laws would be legislated to block the development on national security concerns.
He told the media, “The Australian government has received very clear security advice as to the risk posed by a new Russian embassy presence so close to the country’s parliament,.”
The Prime Minister added that they were acting quickly to confirm the lease site does not become an official diplomatic presence.”
Similarly, Home Affairs Minister Clare O’Neil also said Moscow’s proposed new embassy near the Parliament posed a clear security threat. She added that the main problem with the proposed Russian embassy in the capital city is its location. She further said that the location sits directly head-to-head with the Parliament House.
