Russia's ambassador to New Zealand has dismissed the espionage allegations at the centre of a diplomatic flashpoint as "a small case" and "not any big deal", adding that Aotearoa is "not in the focus" of his nation's intelligence services or foreign policy.
But he conceded little evidence has yet been made public in the case.
Earlier this week, Russian security services arrested a 55-year-old man accused of spying for New Zealand. The man, who has not been named, is being held in pre-trial detention on treason charges and could face life in prison.
He was arrested in Khabarovsk in Russia's south-east, with video shot by the FSB and shown by local media showing the man's arrest and his home being searched.
Ambassador Stanislav Krans spoke to Q+A earlier this week, addressing a statement by Russia's Federal Security Service (FSB) that accused a Russian citizen of passing information to a foreign intelligence service for money.
"He is just under custody," Krans said.
"If it is proved that he is guilty, so it will be the judgement of the court, not by FSB or any of the structures in my country."
The Russian FSB said the man is a Russian citizen and proactively established contact with the NZ Security Intelligence Service. (Source: 1News)
He added: "We don't call New Zealanders as enemies, and we are not focusing on making our relations worse. We have already reached our historical low in our relations.
"But we don't want to make it worse. At the same time, so of course we are just talking about some case that actually it's a small case. It's not any big deal."
The FSB named New Zealand's SIS. Krans declined to confirm or deny the agency's involvement but did not hold back on the man at the centre of the case.
"We don't like that one of our citizens became a traitor," Krans said.
"It should be investigation first completed, and after that, so we get a much clearer picture of what is happening, and who is behind it."
The ambassador said the embassy had no direct knowledge of the investigation.
Krans said he had been disappointed by the local reaction in New Zealand, criticising commentators who had questioned the reliability of Russian accounts.
The Russian Federal Service said he is a Russian citizen and proactively established contact with representatives of the New Zealand Security Intelligence Service. (Source: Other)
"I think that every New Zealander should be proud that their intelligence service is working somewhere efficiently, not wasting taxpayers' money," he suggested.
He quickly cast the remark as hypothetical rather than an admission, saying it should not be taken as confirmation the SIS was involved.
Any question of guilt, he earlier added, would be settled by Russia's courts.
Asked directly whether Russian spies operate in New Zealand - after the SIS named Russia as one of three state actors involved in foreign interference here - Krans said the country was simply not a Russian priority.
"New Zealand is not in the focus of my country," he said, listing spying, trade and political communication among the areas where that was the case.
For the full interview, watch the video above
Q+A with Jack Tame is made with the support of New Zealand On Air
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