Investigative journalist:

Austria’s counterintelligence is overwhelmed

(Bild: stock.adobe.com/Vadym)

The Bulgarian investigative journalist Christo Grozev, who has himself been caught in Moscow's crosshairs, warns that Austria is being infiltrated by Russian secret services. At the same time, counterintelligence in his adopted country is too small and therefore overstretched.

The journalist, who is guarded by constitutional protection officers, stated this on Tuesday evening during a rare public appearance in Vienna, which had only been announced as a video link with him by the Concordia Press Club for security reasons. "It is true that Austria has the counterintelligence infrastructure of a very small country, although it would need the structure of a large country given the concentration of spies," said Grozev, who specializes in Russian intelligence operations. He justified the fact that Austrian services are often dependent on tips from friendly Western services in their activities by pointing out, among other things, that there are a hundred times more people in the USA, for example, dealing with relevant analyses. 

(Bild: APA/Getty Images via AFP/GETTY IMAGES/Roy Rochlin)

The "nicest" Russian secret service
The Russian representation authorities in Austria were full of spies and the cultural institute in Vienna-Wieden in particular had been a major hub for the foreign intelligence service SWR for years. The latter, however, is the "nicest" of all, as this service has not been killing since 1992. He would therefore like to see more SWR and less domestic intelligence service FSB and military intelligence service GRU here, joked Grozev. "But unfortunately, the GRU was even able to infiltrate companies of strategic importance in Vienna and Austria, and that's scary," he said. 

Grozev's answer to the question of whether he would worry about his personal safety when visiting Austria if the FPÖ won the national elections in the fall was short and sweet: "Yes. I would visit much less often than I can afford to at the moment. For obvious reasons," he said.

New strategy: criminals from unsuspicious countries
In recent years, numerous identities of Russian agents have been revealed, leading to massive expulsions of Russian "diplomats" in the West. Grozev warned of new risks, as Russia has been increasingly using criminals from unsuspicious countries for operations since 2022. These criminals could act uncontrollably and kill if they feel threatened.

One example is a burglary in Vienna in which Grozev's son went unnoticed while playing in the next room. British and Austrian investigations indicate that the burglary was organized by the fugitive ex-Wirecard foreman Jan Marsalek, a suspected employee of Russian intelligence services. Former BVT employee Egisto Ott is also allegedly involved in these activities. All those involved are presumed innocent.