MELBOURNE, Australia, July 13, (AP): An Australian army private and her husband accused of spying for Russia were denied bail Friday, on the first charges against suspected operatives under Australia’s sweeping espionage laws enacted in 2018.
Kira Korolev, 40, and her husband Igor Korolev, 62, are Russian-born Australian citizens and hold Russian passports. They did not appear in person and were represented by lawyers in the Brisbane Magistrates Court on a charge each of preparing for an espionage offense.
They did not enter pleas and will appear next in a federal court on Sept. 20. Their lawyers made no public statements.
Australian Federal Police Commissioner Reece Kershaw had earlier told reporters the couple allegedly "worked together to access Australian Defense Force material that related to Australia’s national security interests.”
"We allege they sought that information with the intention of providing it to Russian authorities. Whether that information was handed over remains a key focus of our investigation," Kershaw said.
Kershaw said "no significant compromise” had been identified. Australia's Five Eyes intelligence-sharing partners - United States, Britain, Canada and New Zealand - can be confident that Australian authorities will continue to identify and disrupt espionage.
The Russian embassy dismissed the allegations as "clearly intended to launch another wave of anti-Russian paranoia in Australia" in a statement, adding that it had requested official information from the authorities.
While the couple are the first suspected operatives to be charged under the modernized espionage laws that also outlaw covert foreign interference in domestic politics, Australian security forces have disrupted alleged Russian spies in recent years.