Aussie Cossack dismisses 'Russian spy scandal' as nothingburger and distraction tactic

"The latest Russian spy scandal to hit Australia is of course another nothing burger. There was no Russian involvement in the Russian spy scandal. In fact the Australian government itself, the Australian Federal Police themselves concede that the Russians were not involved in this spy scandal. So how can you call it a spy scandal if Russia's not involved?" Australian independent journalist Aussie Cossack told Sputnik.

The scandal involved Anya Koroleva, an Australian soldier of Russian descent, who traveled to Russia without informing the Australian authorities and allegedly accessed classified documents. She and her husband were arrested.

Aussie Cossack argued that the narrative was being used to distract from Australia's announcement of a significant financial aid package to Ukraine of 250 million Australian dollars (US $160 million), something which has faced public backlash. According to him, the media exaggerated the spy story to divert attention from the controversial aid decision.