Espionage, planning attacks, terrorism... Two people of Russian origin who were arrested in Germany are facing serious charges. The Kremlin denies everything and talks about "spy mania". Moreover, this is not the first case.
The German head of diplomacy, Analena Berbock, invited the Russian ambassador to Berlin for a conversation after the arrest of two alleged Russian spies in Bavaria.
It is a very dangerous thing to suspect that the Kremlin is "recruiting agents from us to carry out attacks on German soil," Berbok wrote on the X network.
Chancellor Olaf Scholz said that the domestic security services are under great demands, because "it can never be accepted that such espionage activities take place in Germany."
Almost the entire political scene condemned the alleged Russian espionage activities. They don't know anything about that in Moscow.
Kremlin spokesman Dimitry Peskov rejected as "absurd" the accusations that Russia planned attacks on German territory. He described the arrest of two German-Russian citizens as a "provocation" by which Berlin wants to further inflame the "spy mania".
Espionage and terrorism?
Two suspects – Dieter S. (39) and Aleksandar J. (37) – were arrested on Wednesday (April 17) in the Bavarian town of Bayreuth. The suspicions are serious and could end up being measured with ten years in prison.
S. and J. allegedly illegally recorded and observed the American military base Grafenwer near Bayreuth and delivered the data to a Russian contact "connected to the Russian services".
S. is suspected of having planned an explosive attack or arson in order to sabotage military facilities and infrastructure in Germany. According to information leaking to the media, the specific attack was not immediately prepared.
S. still faces the suspicion that he was a member of a "terrorist organization", because from 2014 to 2016 he carried weapons in the separatist paramilitary of the self-styled "Donetsk People's Republic".
Both people were born in Russia, and hold citizenship of both countries. Their apartments and workplaces were searched.
Opposition Christian Democrat politician Christoph de Vries told the Handelsblat newspaper that Dieter S.'s German citizenship should be revoked if the charge of membership in a "terrorist organization" is confirmed.
Just the "tip of the iceberg"?
Several secret service experts told the media that the arrested tandem could only be the "tip of the iceberg".
"It should be assumed that Dieter S. and his accomplice are not the only team used by the Russian intelligence services for these purposes in Germany," said Erich Schmidt-Enbom, an expert on secret services and a former soldier.
About two million so-called Russian Germans have immigrated to Germany in recent decades, obtaining citizenship because they have German roots.
Schmidt-Enbom recalls that as early as 1992, a KGB officer assessed that Russian Germans were a convenient entry point for espionage activities.
"We have seen this recently from the performances of many fanatical pro-Russian nationalists at pro-Russian demonstrations in Germany," said the expert for the Bavarian public service.
"No country in Europe is doing more for Ukraine than Germany," says Noja Zircher Zeitung in one comment. “That's right, no doubt. But from the point of view of the Russian regime, this makes Germany a target."
It's not the first time
In recent years, there have been several cases of alleged Russian espionage in Germany. Many do not yet have a judicial epilogue.
A former employee of the BND, Germany's foreign intelligence service, is on trial in Berlin. He allegedly forwarded secret information to the Russian FSB in the fall of 2022 together with a businessman and collected 850.000 euros for it. Both were accused of the grave crime of treason.
In August last year, a soldier who worked for the Bundeswehr's Federal Armaments Institute was arrested in Koblenz. He allegedly offered his services to Russians in the Russian embassy and consulate for months.
In November 2022, a former Bundeswehr reserve officer was sentenced to a suspended sentence of one year and nine months for supplying the Russian GRU service with information about Bundeswehr reservists and cyber capabilities for years.
It's a mystical case that was barely reported this February. Namely, the German Military Counterintelligence Service claims that drones have been flying over military training grounds in recent months, and believes that these are Russian attempts to record the training of Ukrainian soldiers in Germany. So far, no one has been arrested in this connection.
At the beginning of this March, Germany was rocked by the wiretapping of top Bundeswehr officers talking about the possibility of Taurus cruise missiles, which Germany still refuses to supply to Ukraine.
The conversation was then published in the Russian media and served as a basis for Moscow's accusations against Berlin. Everyone in Germany is convinced that it was the Russian services that intercepted the conversation.
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