At the same time, Vienna—a traditional hub for diplomats—is coming under pressure due to alleged Russian espionage, prompting the Federal Ministry for European and International Affairs (BMEIA) to issue clear statements. This makes it all the more necessary for the minister to discuss this issue with European partners as well. Recently, Vienna has been plagued time and again by espionage scandals, and for years Austria has been considered a prime target for foreign intelligence services—which, in addition to their traditional role of spying on one another in Vienna and at international organizations, also seek to influence domestic politics and use Austria as a gateway to Europe for hybrid warfare.
Educational Reform and Defense Centers in Finland as a Model
During her working visit to the Finnish capital, the focus was particularly on the protection of critical infrastructure, support for Ukraine, and measures against disinformation and foreign influence. Finland is regarded in Europe as a pioneer in dealing with hybrid risks.
“The developments of recent years have been a wake-up call. Europe is taking its security into its own hands, and Finland is an important partner in this effort. But security means more than just defense,” Foreign Minister Meinl-Reisinger emphasized during her stay.
As part of her visit, the minister visited the Helsinki-based European Center of Excellence for Countering Hybrid Threats (Hybrid CoE) for a professional exchange with Director Teija Tiilikainen. The center supports EU and NATO member states in combating cyberattacks, disinformation, and covert destabilization.
Resilience as the Key: From Schools to Foreign Policy
A key focus of the trip was societal resilience. At the Finnish Ministry of Education and the independent fact-checking organization Faktabaari, the foreign minister gathered insights on how to address disinformation. Finland is internationally regarded as a pioneer, as media literacy and critical evaluation of information are embedded in school curricula from an early age.
Austria is following suit: As part of an education reform, the new course “Media and Democracy” will be incorporated into the upper-secondary school curriculum. In addition, Meinl-Reisinger announced an international conference in Vienna for April 2027 to advance effective measures against foreign information manipulation and interference (FIMI), specifically on April 14 and 15, 2027.
Vienna as a Hotspot: Taking a Hard Line Against Espionage Under the Guise of Diplomacy
While the foreign minister is advocating for greater resilience in Northern Europe, the Foreign Ministry in Vienna faces challenges at home. The BMEIA responded to recent media reports , also reported by Vindobona.org, about potential espionage cases and made it clear that covert espionage activities in Austria will not be tolerated under any circumstances.
As the seat of numerous international organizations (such as the UN and the OSCE), Vienna plays a special role. To live up to this responsibility, cooperation between the Foreign Ministry, the relevant ministries, and the intelligence services was significantly intensified last year. The authorities’ track record reflects a tough stance: Over the past 12 months, four diplomats with intelligence backgrounds have been expelled. Since 2022, the number of Russian diplomatic personnel in Austria has been reduced by a total of 23 percent.
Regarding a list of names that recently surfaced, the ministry emphasized that the authorities had not seen this list in advance and that there were no internal indications of criminally relevant activities on the part of the individuals named. Since the BMEIA does not have an independent mandate to combat crime, the security authorities were immediately tasked with conducting an investigation.
Calls for Tighter Laws
To prevent espionage even more effectively in the future, the Foreign Ministry expressly supports the tightening of espionage laws as outlined in the government program and calls for swift legislative implementation.