Austria expels 3 Russian diplomats over signals spying

Austria declared three Russian diplomats personae ⁠non gratae over ⁠an “antenna forest” on the roofs of ⁠diplomatic buildings that could be used for spying, the government said on Monday.Numerous satellite dishes placed on buildings used by the Russian state in Vienna, particularly a residential complex for diplomatic staff, have long attracted ‌the attention of Austria’s main domestic intelligence service, which has warned for years they could be used to intercept other states’ satellite communications.“It is unacceptable that diplomatic immunity be used to commit espionage,” Foreign Minister Beate Meinl-Reisinger said in a statement confirming that the three diplomats had already left the country. It brings ⁠to 14 the number of Russian diplomats Austria has expelled since 2020.