The Russian ambassador to Australia has voiced his anger and frustration at the Australian government for blocking his embassy's expansion in Canberra.
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And he hinted that there could now be action against the Australian embassy in Moscow.
In an exclusive interview with The Canberra Times, Aleksey Pavlovsky said the government's decision to block his embassy's expansion was "vindictive" and prompted by "anti-Russian hysteria". Australia had engaged in what he called a "theatre of the absurd".
He was speaking after the decision to prevent the embassy's expansion from its current site in Griffith to the embassy district in Yarralumla.
"It seems to me that in this case, the self-induced anti-Russian hysteria among Australian politicians prevailed over the basics of statecraft and common sense," the ambassador said.
He likened the block on expansion to throwing a dead possum into the embassy grounds.
"Let me recount to you a story," he said.
"A couple of weeks ago, one of those guys who are paid to stage pro-Ukrainian rallies off our compound in Canberra Avenue, choosing a moment when police were not around, threw a dead possum body over the fence to the embassy territory.
"Most probably, he saw this vulgar act of hooliganism as some form of commendable political signaling."
But the ambassador's reading of Mr Albanese's decision was: "I'm struggling with the thought that the motives behind the government's vindictive actions around the Yarralumla site are of some kind of similar nature."
The diplomat questioned whether Australia had broken the international agreement which governs how host governments treat embassies of other countries. He said his embassy was no longer able to function adequately - and that was against the 1961 Vienna Convention.
Mr Pavlovsky did not specify whether action might be taken against the Australian embassy in Moscow. Russia would not "impede" Australian diplomats, he said. That would be against the Vienna Convention. But, he added: "reciprocity is reciprocity".
In the language of diplomats, "reciprocity" means treating a country's diplomats in one country in the same way as that country treats the other country's diplomats. Both host countries should treat the other's diplomats in the same way.
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In plain English, Russia can "reciprocate" actions against its diplomats in Australia with similar actions against Australian diplomats in Moscow.
But the ambassador said that it was important for diplomatic relations to continue, particularly at times of crisis.
"The Russian side is interested in having diplomatic channels properly working." But: "Reciprocity is reciprocity."
The ambassador takes particular exception to a suggestion made by ANU professor John Blaxland in this masthead that the Russian embassy on Canberra Avenue is a "fortress" which had been expanded underground to facilitate espionage.
The ambassador said that the expansion at the Canberra Avenue site was for accommodation for diplomats who had been living in rented accommodation outside the complex. The plan was then to move the chancery (the embassy's main business offices) and the consular section (for visas and the like) to the Yarralumla site. The new consular section had already been built there.
Now that Russia has been denied the new site, the business side and the consular side did not have enough space to operate effectively, the ambassador said.
"My problem now - my immediate problem - is where can my consular officials work? How can they provide services to Russian nationals and Australian nationals?" he said.
The original application for the new site was granted in 2008 : "I would like to stress that it was not the Russian government that picked this plot of land. It was what we were offered by the Australian government."
He said that 15 years ago, its existing complex was "becoming growingly shabby and not fit for purpose".
He is now debating what to do. "I'm asking myself whether it would be reasonable to seek another site, invest in it, build premises, while knowing it can be simply taken from you.
"And frankly, I'm not sure that I'm ready to recommend to my government to re-engage in what, in my opinion, turned out to be a three shells game."
A three shells game is a street trick played on nave passers-by who are deceived out of their money.
The elephant in the room in all this is the situation in Ukraine (and in Russia where an uprising fizzled out). Australia is not technically at war with Russia but it is arming Ukrainian resistance to the Russian invasion. Some might see that as a proxy war.
The ambassador sees the Ukrainian situation as behind the decision to block Russia's embassy expansion - "vindictive" is the word he used.
He detects the input of the Australian intelligence services. "Construction works at the embassy compound in Griffith are conducted by an Australian company according to plans previously submitted and approved by all kinds of Australian authorities.
"So they (ASIO) are comfortably monitoring the Griffith site, I'm sure on a 24/7 basis, in highly professional ways. So I have no doubts that with the overall paranoia (of) the trends here.
"Every brick and every nail that has been entering the construction site have been counted."
Steve Evans
Steve Evans is a reporter on The Canberra Times. He's been a BBC correspondent in New York, London, Berlin and Seoul and the sole reporter/photographer/paper deliverer on The Glen Innes Examiner in country New South Wales. "All the jobs have been fascinating - and so it continues."
Steve Evans is a reporter on The Canberra Times. He's been a BBC correspondent in New York, London, Berlin and Seoul and the sole reporter/photographer/paper deliverer on The Glen Innes Examiner in country New South Wales. "All the jobs have been fascinating - and so it continues."
