Russia Loses High Court Bid to Build Embassy Near Australian Parliament

Russia’s government lost a legal bid on Wednesday at Australia’s High Court to construct a new embassy less than a kilometre from the Australian Parliament.

In 2008, Russia had been granted a 99-year lease for the site, having paid nearly AU$3 million (approximately US$2 million) for the land, which is located around 400 metres from the parliamentary precinct.

However, the lease was revoked in 2023 after the Australian Parliament passed a law preventing the project from proceeding.

At the time, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said the government had received “very clear security advice” from Canberra’s intelligence agency regarding the “risk presented by a new Russian presence so close to Parliament House.”

This action led to a prolonged legal battle between Russia and Australia, with Moscow’s lawyers arguing that the law was unconstitutional.

On Wednesday, the High Court upheld the validity of the law, but also ruled that the Australian government must compensate Russia.

Following the 2023 law change, Australia’s attempts to seize the land were initially delayed by a middle-aged Russian diplomat who occupied a small security shed on the site. The diplomat endured freezing temperatures during his brief stay, passing the time by watching television, snacking on vegetable chips, and occasionally stepping out into the cold to smoke cigarettes.

The squatter was evicted just days later, following a preliminary High Court ruling that supported the government’s efforts to remove Russia from the site.