consulate

Sept. 1 (UPI) — Australian police on Monday arrested a man accused of driving an SUV into the gates of Sydney’s Russian consulate, according to authorities and Russian officials.

Russia’s Consulate General, located on Fullerton Street in Sydney, confirmed the crash in a statement on Telegram, stating the incident occurred at about 8:05 a.m. AEST.

It said the driver had parked the SUV so as to block access to the premises and refused police orders to exit the vehicle. He then “deliberately rammed the gates” of the mission, it said.

No consulate general employees reported injuries and operations continued as normal, the consulate added.

“Thanks to the coordinated actions of the competent Australian authorities, the intruder was promptly neutralized,” the consulate general said.

“He has been arrested and is providing testimony regarding the motives for his actions.”

New South Wales Police identified the driver in a statement as a 39-year-old man.

He has been charged with a slew of offenses, including three counts of damaging property, three counts of resisting arrest and possession of a knife in a public space.

No motive was mentioned.

Police said the suspect had parked the SUV in the consulate’s driveway, then jumped the mission’s fence and entered the consulate grounds before re-entering his vehicle.

After police attempted to speak to the man, he allegedly “accelerated the vehicle — ramming the front gate of the property — causing significant damage.”

The suspect was then removed from the vehicle, arrested and transported to the Surry Hills Police Station, it said.

Two constables — ages 22 and 25 — suffered minor injuries in the incident, NSW Police said, without specifying exactly how they were injured.

The suspect is to make his first court appearance Tuesday.

Police say a 39-year-old man has been taken into custody over the incident in Sydney’s Woollahra suburb.

Australian police have arrested a 34-year-old man after he drove his car into the front gate of the Russian consulate in Sydney, according to police and local media.

In a statement, the New South Wales Police Force said the crash took place on Monday morning after officers responded to reports of an “unauthorised vehicle” parked in the driveway of the consulate in the Sydney suburb of Woollahra.

Officers tried to speak with the driver, but he “drove his vehicle into the gates of the property”, the statement said.

A 24-year-old constable was injured on his hand during the incident, it added.

Television footage from Sky News and Nine showed a car with a smashed window abandoned next to a Russian flagpole.

There was no immediate comment from the Russian consulate.

In May, Poland ordered Russia’s consulate in Krakow to shut after accusations Moscow orchestrated fire at Warsaw shopping centre.

Russia says it will close Poland’s consulate in Kaliningrad, a Russian exclave between Poland and Lithuania, after Warsaw decided to shut down the Russian consulate in Krakow.

The Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced the move on Friday.

This follows Poland ordering the Russian consulate in the southern city of Krakow to shut in May after authorities accused Moscow of orchestrating a fire that destroyed a Warsaw shopping centre last year.

The May 12, 2024, arson destroyed more than 1,000 shops at the Marywilska 44 centre, but no one was injured.

Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski accused Russian special services of involvement, saying there was evidence they had committed a “reprehensible act of sabotage” against the centre. Russia denied any involvement in the attack.

In May, Russia promised an “adequate response” to Poland’s move, and on Friday, the Foreign Ministry said it was “withdrawing consent for the functioning of the Consulate General of Poland in Kaliningrad from August 29”.

It also said Poland’s charge d’affaires in Russia was summoned and handed a formal note announcing the move, citing “unfriendly” and “unjustified” actions by the Polish government.

“This step was caused by the unfounded and hostile actions of the Polish side, expressed in the reduction of the Russian consular presence on the territory of Poland,” it added.

Strained ties

Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Pawel Wronski said Russia’s decision to close the consulate was unjustified.

The possibility of this decision “was taken into account by the Foreign Ministry”, he told reporters on Friday. But he added that this “doesn’t mean that it is a legitimate decision”.

“Unlike Russia, Poland does not engage in sabotage, cyberattacks or conduct actions against the Russian state,” he said.

He added that Poland would “respond adequately” to the decision, without elaborating.

Diplomatic ties between Moscow and Warsaw have been historically strained and have frayed further over Russia’s war in Ukraine.

Poland, a NATO and European Union member, is one of the main countries through which Western nations supply weapons and ammunition to Kyiv.

In May 2024, Poland imposed restrictions on the movements of Russian diplomats on its soil due to Moscow’s “involvement” in what it called a “hybrid war”.

Poland later ordered the closure of Russia’s consulate in Poznan and said it was willing to close the other consulates if acts of “terrorism” continued.

In January, Russia closed the Polish consulate in St Petersburg in retaliation.

Apart from the embassies, both countries now only have one consulate left on their respective territories.