Canberra: On Monday, a top court backed the government's attempt to seize the land, dealing a legal blow to Russia's plans to construct a new embassy close to Australia's parliament.

After intelligence agencies warned it could be used as a base to spy on lawmakers, Australia has prevented Russia from constructing a new embassy in Canberra.
Last week, Russia filed a last-minute injunction to retain ownership of the land and sent a mysterious diplomat to occupy it while the legal dispute was ongoing.

But on Monday morning, Australia's high court ruled that Russia had to leave the area, at least until the case was brought back before the court for more thorough legal arguments.

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Soon after the decision, the squatter-diplomat was seen leaving the area before being driven away in a diplomatic vehicle.

According to the court, there is currently no legal justification for a Russian presence on the site, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese told reporters.

"We anticipate the Russian Federation to follow the court's ruling,"
In 2008, Russia obtained a lease on the property from the Australian government, and in 2011 it received approval to erect a new embassy there.
However, the Australian government declared last week that it was dumping that agreement.

The site, which is about 400 metres (440 yards) from the parliamentary precinct, is where Australia's parliament passed laws specifically intended to prevent a Russian embassy from being built.

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"The government has received very clear security advice regarding the risk posed by a new Russian presence so close to Parliament House," Albanese claimed.

To prevent the lease site from becoming a formal diplomatic presence, we are moving quickly.
A fresh round of military aid for Ukraine, including 28 M113 armoured personnel carriers and an unspecified number of 105mm howitzer rounds, was also announced by Albanese on Monday.

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"We support international efforts to ensure that Putin's aggression fails and that Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity prevails," Albanese said.

Both more Bushmaster infantry vehicles and Hawkei light armoured patrol vehicles, which Ukraine had requested, were not included in the package.