Australian Man Who Joined Ukraine's Army Charged With Trying to Feed Intel to Russia

A 27-year-old dual Russian-Australian citizen appeared in a Brisbane court Friday charged with trying to funnel Ukrainian military secrets to people he believed were Russian intelligence officers, after allegedly joining Ukraine's armed forces himself.

Vladimir Teslov, identified in court documents and named by the Australian Federal Police, faces one count of attempting to engage in intentional foreign interference. The offense carries a maximum 20-year prison sentence, according to the AFP.

Police allege Teslov traveled to Russia in October 2024 for what they called military-style training. He returned to Australia in December 2024 and, according to the AFP, kept in contact with people he believed were tied to Russian intelligence services.

In May 2025, police allege, Teslov traveled to Ukraine and enlisted in its armed forces. There, he allegedly gained access to information about Ukrainian military personnel, units, locations and operations, and attempted to pass some of that along to his suspected Russian contacts.

The Guardian and 7NEWS Australia both report Teslov traveled to Ukraine in May 2025. The Kyiv Post, citing Australia's ABC News, put the trip in March 2025. The AFP's own account, relayed consistently by the Kyiv Independent, Al Jazeera, Breitbart and 7NEWS, says May 2025, the version this article treats as accurate.

AFP Commissioner Krissy Barrett said the investigation, codenamed Operation Woodcreeper, began in June 2026 and grew out of work by the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation. Teslov was arrested Thursday in the Brisbane suburb of Sumner. Police executed search warrants at properties in Sumner, Sinnamon Park, Springwood and Petrie Terrace, plus one targeting an individual in St Lucia, and seized multiple electronic devices for forensic review.

Barrett was direct about what this case is not. "At this stage, there is nothing to suggest there is, or has been, any threat to Australia," the AFP said in its statement, carried by Al Jazeera and the Kyiv Independent. Teslov was unemployed, lived in Queensland, and there's no indication he received any military training on Australian soil or worked for any Australian government agency.

Barrett shut down speculation about a connection to Australia's other active Russia-linked espionage case. Kira and Igor Korolev, a Russian-born couple living in Brisbane, were charged with espionage offenses in 2024 and have yet to enter a plea. Barrett told reporters there is no known link between Teslov and the Korolevs, according to the Guardian.

This is the first time Australia has laid foreign interference charges tied to Russia specifically, though it's the eighth time the offense has been used since Canberra passed its foreign interference laws in 2018, per the AFP. Barrett was careful to frame the charge as aimed at conduct, not a country. "Our job is ensuring Australia does not become a safe haven for people who think they can conduct foreign interference on our shores," she said, adding Russia itself has not been singled out for targeting despite Australia's backing of Ukraine.

ASIO Deputy Director-General Claire McGuinness put it more bluntly, telling reporters, per Al Jazeera, "This case should put regimes perpetrating foreign interference on notice: we have zero tolerance."

Russia's embassy in Canberra said it learned of the case through media reports and has received no formal notification from Australian authorities, according to Al Jazeera. The embassy said it's working to establish the facts.

Ukraine's decision on whether to pursue its own prosecution over Teslov's alleged conduct while serving in its armed forces remains unclear. Barrett said that decision rests entirely with Kyiv, and the Kyiv Post reported it reached out to Ukraine's Military Intelligence directorate (HUR) for comment on Teslov's service record but had not received a response as of publication.

Barrett left the door open on how deep this goes. She said investigators are still working out whether Teslov volunteered his services to suspected Russian handlers or was actively recruited, and whether he was operating alone or as part of a wider network. "Further arrests were possible," she told reporters, according to the Guardian.

Teslov's case was adjourned in Brisbane Magistrates Court until Oct. 4, according to the Kyiv Post. No plea has been entered. The broader forensic examination of the seized devices and whatever it turns up about other people involved is still pending.