BERLIN — Austria’s government on Wednesday announced plans to strengthen the country’s anti-espionage laws. Current legislation explicitly prohibits spying directed against Austria itself, but does not extend that protection to other nations or international organizations based on Austrian soil.
Austria, an EU member with a longstanding policy of military neutrality dating to the 1950s, hosts numerous international institutions in its capital, Vienna. These include several United Nations agencies such as the International Atomic Energy Agency, as well as the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe and the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC).
“Espionage poses a real threat to our national security and, above all, to Austria’s reputation as a capital of dialogue and an official host to the United Nations and more than 40 international organizations,” Foreign Minister Beate Meinl-Reisinger said while presenting the draft legislation alongside Cabinet ministers. “We have a responsibility, and we are meeting it.”
Meinl-Reisinger acknowledged that Vienna has long carried the label of a “capital of espionage,” a reputation rooted in the Cold War era. She said she intends to dispel any “romantic notion” of spying.
She explained that the measures respond to the current hybrid threat landscape, which encompasses non-conventional hostile actions such as sabotage, cyberattacks, disinformation campaigns, and other covert methods.
Austria’s criminal code currently provides for prison sentences of up to five years for anyone who establishes or operates a secret intelligence service to the detriment of the Republic of Austria, or supports such a service in any capacity. The law also prohibits setting up, operating, or supporting a foreign military intelligence service.
The proposed legislation, which requires parliamentary approval, would raise the maximum penalty for espionage against Austria to 10 years. It would also explicitly criminalize spying against international organizations or the European Union, carrying a maximum sentence of five years, according to Meinl-Reisinger.
Officials added that the law would explicitly prohibit both recruiting agents and allowing oneself to be recruited as an agent. This provision is aimed particularly at so-called “throwaway agents”—individuals enlisted for low-level espionage operations who may not fully understand what they are getting into.
A similar plan was announced by Austria’s previous justice minister in 2024, but that administration failed to pass legislation before that year’s election.
“We are no longer looking away,” Meinl-Reisinger said. She noted that since taking office in March 2025, 63 diplomatic visa applications have been denied, and eight Russian diplomats have been expelled from Austria during that period.
