Russian diplomat squatting at site near Parliament House in Canberra

A Russian diplomat illegally squats on a piece of land near the parliament building after representatives of Vladimir Putin’s regime were expelled from the premises, it has been reported.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese last week rammed through legislation to legally deprive Russia of its planned new embassy site in Canberra after fears were raised that it could be used to threaten national security.

But an extraordinary standoff has ensued after an unidentified Russian official was found to be staying in a drop-off truck on the land – and Australian police are unable to arrest him due to diplomatic immunity.

The man was photographed by The Australian newspaper casually smoking a cigarette as helpless Australian Federal Police (AFP) officers watched.

A view of the construction site of the Russian Embassy in Yarralumla, Canberra

‘Can I help you?’ the man asked a reporter in heavily accented English before returning to the portable building with multiple surveillance cameras.

It is reported that he has been receiving food deliveries for the past few days.

A spokesman for Home Secretary Clare O’Neil said the government was preparing to seize the land.

“Make no mistake, last week Parliament took decisive action to resolve the national security challenges posed by this site,” the spokesman said.

“Processes are underway for the Commonwealth to formalize ownership of the site.”

The diplomat enters the grounds because Russia’s lease on the land is no longer legally valid following last week’s legislation.

However, the legal ramifications of removing the diplomat can be tricky.

Don Rothwell, ANU’s international law expert, told The Australian that AFP agents “can’t really arrest him.”

“They can, of course, try to engage the diplomat and ask him to continue, but he can refuse to do so,” Rothwell said.

If such a situation were to arise, the State Department and Commerce could try to expel him, but another diplomat could take his place.

Australian Federal Police agents are unable to arrest the man (pictured) because he enjoys diplomatic immunity

Russia has already threatened retaliation over the Australian government’s decision last week to strip them of the site, accusing the country’s leaders of “Russophobic hysteria.”

“Another unfriendly display from Australia,” a Kremlin spokesman said, according to a report published last week by Russia’s TASS news agency.

“We take that into account and if there are topics on the agenda that require the principle of reciprocity, we will act accordingly.”

Intelligence agencies cited threats of espionage and political interference if Russia’s second embassy were to be built in the Yarralumla diplomatic district, just a stone’s throw from the parliament building.

Russia currently occupies the former USSR embassy in the suburb of Griffith, which is further from the parliament building than the new location.

Mr Albanese acknowledged that the Russians would take action in response to the decision to strip them of the site, but he said it was the right decision.

“We don’t expect Russia to be in a position to talk about international law given their rejection of it so consistently and so brazenly with their invasion of Ukraine and the atrocities that have taken place that are happening all the time,” he said.

The Russian Federation is expected to take legal action against the decision.