At the public meeting of the Parliamentary Control Committee, the three heads of authorities warned against Russian activities. The Leipzig incendiary package was therefore a dangerous case of sabotage.
According to the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution, Germany narrowly escaped a plane crash in July when an air freight package was burned, possibly initiated by Russia. It was only thanks to a lucky coincidence that the package caught fire while it was still on the ground in the DHL logistics center in Leipzig and not during the flight, said Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution President Thomas Haldenwang during a public questioning of the German secret services in the Bundestag. Otherwise there would have been a crash. This might also have hit people who “sympathize with (Russian President Vladimir) Putin and his goals.”
According to dpa information, the happy coincidence was that the onward flight of the cargo package from the Baltics was delayed in Leipzig. The package contained an incendiary device that ignited and set a freight container on fire. It is believed in security circles that the incident is related to Russian sabotage.
The top staff of the secret services warned the population against naivety at the meeting of the Bundestag’s Parliamentary Control Committee (PKGr). Russian President Vladimir Putin has long since declared Germany an enemy, emphasized the presidents of the three intelligence services.
“We are observing aggressive actions by the Russian intelligence services,” explained Haldenwang. Espionage and sabotage by Russian actors in particular have increased in Germany – “both quantitatively and qualitatively”.
BND boss: Russia will be capable of attacking the West by 2030 at the latest
The head of the Federal Intelligence Service (BND), Bruno Kahl, explained: “The Kremlin sees the West, and therefore Germany, as an enemy.” By the end of the decade at the latest, Russia will be in a position to launch an attack on the West, both in terms of personnel and material. “Putin will test the West’s red lines,” says the BND chief. Therefore, unity and defensive ability are important. It is to be expected that Moscow will try to divide NATO before an open military conflict.
The President of the Military Counterintelligence Service (MAD), Martina Rosenberg, reports worrying spying attempts by foreign intelligence services against the Bundeswehr: “Be it to investigate German arms deliveries to Ukraine, training projects or armaments projects or to convey a feeling of insecurity through acts of sabotage.” Rosenberg demands that the MAD needs more powers, including to effectively support the stationing of a combat-ready brigade in Lithuania.
The Bundestag committee, which is supposed to monitor the work of the three services, usually meets behind closed doors. The content of its meetings is generally secret. The management only publicly answers questions from MPs once a year.
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.
