Austria has ordered four Russian diplomats based in Vienna to leave the country after declaring them personae non gratae for activities the government said were incompatible with diplomatic status. The Foreign Ministry said on Friday, October 23, that the decision followed findings by Austrian security authorities, but it did not disclose further details.
Three of the diplomats were assigned to Russia’s embassy in Austria. The fourth worked at Russia’s delegation to the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), dealing with military security and arms control.
The expulsions bring to 18 the number of Russian diplomats Austria has sent home since 2020. Vienna hosts the OSCE and several international organizations, making it a major hub for multilateral diplomacy and a place where intelligence activity has long drawn scrutiny.
Russia signalled that it would respond, although no details of any retaliatory steps were immediately provided. Austria remains militarily neutral but has politically supported Ukraine since Russia launched its full-scale invasion in 2022. The latest decision adds to a series of European measures against Russian officials over suspected intelligence activity.
