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Speculation is mounting that the Austrian capital, Vienna, might be the venue for a cloak and dagger prisoner exchange straight out of a Cold War thriller.

And with a long history as a stomping ground for secret services from all over the world, Vienna has what it takes for a smooth spy swap.

After all, Vienna is the capital of a neutral country at the heart of Europe.

And more than a century of spying history makes this romantic city a place where, 20 years after the end of the Cold War, agents and informants still feel at ease.

"All the services that worked here during the Cold War have a presence in Vienna today", says Siegfried Beer, historian and head of the Austrian Center for Intelligence, Propaganda and Security Studies (ACIPSS).