Wolfgang Geier discusses with experts from the Office for the Protection of the Constitution, among others
Vienna (OTS) – What are Austria’s intelligence services capable of – and what not? These and other questions will be addressed in a new edition of the ORF III discussion format “zur SACHE” on the topic “Secret services – Vienna as a hub for Putin’s agents” on Friday, April 5, 2024, at 8:15 p.m. Wolfgang Geier welcomes to the studio, among others:
Peter Gridling, former director of the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution and Combating Terrorism (BVT), Thomas Riegler, historian and intelligence expert, and Anna Thalhammer, editor-in-chief of “profil”.
Jan Marsalek, formerly a key figure in the billion-dollar scandal surrounding the financial services provider Wirecard and one of the most wanted men in the world, is now accused of spying for Russia together with a former secret service employee from Austria. It is believed that three cell phones that once belonged to top Interior Ministry officials were sold to Moscow by the two. The matter will be discussed next week by the National Security Council in the Federal Chancellery. These incidents raise the question of what Austria’s intelligence services are capable of and what they are not capable of. It is estimated that around 7,000 international secret agents are active in Vienna alone. Why is the federal capital so popular with the Russian intelligence service?
Further details about the ORF III Culture and Information program are available at tv.ORF.at/orf3.