Some of these are our friends: Australia's spy agency accuses some nations of foreign interference
File photo.
Mike Burgess, the director-general of Australia's spy agencythe Australian Security Intelligence Organisation (ASIO), on Sunday (Aug 11)accused some friendly nations of running foreign interference operations in the country. Burgess saidtheir identities would surprise people if revealed.
In an interview with public broadcaster ABC, Burgess said, "I can think of at least three or four that we've actually actively found involved in foreign interference in Australian diaspora communities."
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"Some of them would surprise you. Some of them are also our friends," he added. The spy agency chief declined to identify the countries involved.
An accusation on Iran in 2023
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Last year, the Australian government named Iran as having engaged in foreign interference. The government pointed out that Australian intelligencedisrupted "individuals" conducting a surveillance operation on an Iranian-Australian's home.
However, Burgess told ABC on Sunday that other countries were also secretlyattempting to interfere in Australia's political system and its diaspora communities.
"In diaspora communities, there are multiple countries that attempt to threaten and intimidate Australians living in this country.When we find it, we deal with it effectively," he said.
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Foreign interference, espionage and politically motivated violence are Australia's principal security concerns, Burgess added.
A foreign interference plot foiled in 2022
In 2022, Burgess revealedASIO had foiled a foreign interference plot by a wealthy person -- named only as "the puppeteer" -- with deep connections to a foreign government.
"The puppeteerfunnelled hundreds of thousands of dollars to an employee to try to influence an election," Burgess said then and refused to specify which election was targeted.
On Sunday, he said that ASIOwould be keeping an eye on such risks surrounding Australia's next general election, widely expected to be held next year.
Earlier in August, the spy agency raisedAustralia's terrorism threat level to "probable", saying a homegrown rise in extreme ideologies had increased the likelihood of a violent act in the next 12 months.
(With inputs from agencies)