Tehran rejects Finland’s espionage claims as ‘strange’
Iran’s Foreign Ministry on Monday rejected claims made by Finland’s government that Iran had spied on the European country.
The Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei said that such a report was strange to us from a country with which we have had “logical relations and we have never heard such cases from them."
"We consider this claim in line with the coordinated approach of European countries to exert pressure on Iran," Baqaei said in his weekly press conference.
Th spokesman said that Iran summoned Finish ambassador on Saturday and asked for an explanation for the claims for which no documents have been presented.
Finland's Security and Intelligence Service (Supo) on Friday accused Iran of espionage and the possible use of criminal groups for subversive activities in the country.
The country's security service did not specify what kind of information Iran seeks but cited a broader rise in espionage threats.
Supo claimed that Iran's tactics could include recruiting organized crime groups to carry out operations in Finland. The agency did not provide details on what kinds of acts might be involved but claimed that similar Iranian-linked plots have been uncovered elsewhere in Europe.
It is noted that for the first time, Finland has officially added Iran to the list of countries that conduct espionage activities against Helsinki. Previously, only Russia and China were publicly named.
Supo said Iran’s actions reflect deteriorating relations with Western countries and highlighted that the threat is growing in other Nordic countries as well.
The warning from Supo came amid similar concerns raised by Sweden earlier this year. In its March annual threat assessment, the Swedish Security Police (SAPO) claimed that Iran had escalated its intelligence activities and was increasingly using “criminal networks” within Sweden.