According to the US broadcaster CNN, Armin Papperger, head of the arms company Rheinmetall, was the target of an assassination attempt by Russia. However, Papperger is said not to have been the only target.
According to a report by the US television channel CNN, the USA and Germany have foiled Russian plans to assassinate Rheinmetall CEO Armin Papperger. The Russian government planned an assassination attempt on the head of the arms company, which supplies weapons and military vehicles to Ukraine, at the beginning of the year, CNN reported on Thursday, citing five officials in the USA and Germany. The German secret services foiled the plans after being informed of them by the USA.
According to CNN, Russia is said to have planned the attack on Papperger because of the Düsseldorf-based arms company’s deliveries to Ukraine. Moscow had planned a whole series of murders of European managers in the arms industry who were supporting Ukraine in the war against the Russian invasion troops. The plan for the attack on the Rheinmetall boss was, however, the most advanced.
Papperger has pushed for more arms deliveries to Ukraine. His company, one of the largest ammunition manufacturers in the world, operates a tank repair facility in the west of the country together with Ukraine. Papperger announced in June that he wanted to expand cooperation with Ukraine and supply Lynx infantry fighting vehicles.
Federal government does not comment on report on Rheinmetall
A spokesman for the company declined to comment on the CNN report. He told the CNN that the company does not comment on questions of corporate security. star“The necessary measures are always taken in regular coordination with the security authorities,” he simply said.
On the sidelines of the NATO summit in Washington, German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock (Greens) said of the CNN report that it confirmed the “hybrid war of aggression” that Russia was waging. “And that underlines once again that we as Europeans must protect ourselves as best we can and not be naive,” she added.
The West is changing gears – is the turning point in the Ukraine war now coming?
05:02 min
However, the federal government did not want to comment specifically on the report. A spokesman for the Federal Ministry of the Interior responded to a request from the AFP news agency: “We cannot comment on the CNN report. In principle, the federal government takes the threats posed by the Russian regime very seriously. Our security authorities are very vigilant and are acting accordingly, in close cooperation with our international partners.”
The ministry spokesperson also stressed that the German government would not allow itself to be “intimidated by the Russian threats”. The government would “continue to do everything in its power to prevent possible threats in Germany”.
Source: Stern
I have been working in the news industry for over 6 years, first as a reporter and now as an editor. I have covered politics extensively, and my work has appeared in major newspapers and online news outlets around the world. In addition to my writing, I also contribute regularly to 24 Hours World.
