The Australian federal government on Thursday passed emergency legislation to prevent the Russian Federation from building a new embassy near Australia’s parliament. The Home Affairs Act 2023 cancels Russia’s lease of land in the Australian capital Canberra, citing risks to national security. At a press conference, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said that the law has been expedited to prevent a formal Russian diplomatic presence near the parliament.

“The Government has received very clear security advice as to the risk presented by a new Russian presence so close to Parliament House. We are acting quickly to ensure the lease site does not become a formal diplomatic presence,” the prime minister said.

Minister for Home Affairs and Cyber Security Clare O’Neil stated that Australia’s largest national security challenges are espionage and foreign interference, and the proximity of the leased land would present a substantial risk. The minister said:

The action is direct and decisive. We do not have any interest in sugar-coating this message. We will not stand for espionage and foreign interference in our country. We will act in the face of danger to our democracy and our citizens, and we will do so without any apology to anyone.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov condemned the legislation, stating that the Russian government will “take this into account” if a similar matter arises in the future.

“To our regret, Australia diligently continues to move in the main stream of the authors of the Russophobic hysteria that is now taking place in the Western countries,” Peskov said.

Australia’s Russian embassy told Russian state news agency TASS that the legislation is “another step by Anthony Albanese towards a deliberate and systematic destruction of relations with Moscow.”

The 99-year lease was acquired by Russia in 2008 to build a second embassy in the Australian capital in addition to their embassy in Griffith. The Australian government sought to cancel the lease following Russia’s unlawful invasion of Ukraine in 2022 and subsequent cyber security threats to Australia. The bill was introduced after the National Capital Authority attempted to terminate the lease, a move that was declared invalid by the Federal Court.