Two suspected Russian spies arrested in Germany for planned attacks

Federal prosecutors arrested two suspected Russian spies in Bavaria on Thursday on suspicion of espionage and planning attacks on military targets to undermine support for Ukraine.

The two men are suspected of having worked for a foreign intelligence service in “a particularly serious case,” the prosecutor’s office announced on Thursday. The main defendant also stands accused of having planned multiple explosive and arson attacks, primarily on military infrastructure and industrial sites in Germany.

“Our security authorities have prevented possible explosive attacks to undermine our military aid to Ukraine. This is a severe case of suspected agent activity for Putin’s criminal regime,” Interior Minister Nancy Faeser told journalists on Thursday.

According to the prosecutor’s office, the main defendant had been in contact with a person linked to the Russian Secret Service since October 2023.

The two men are also said to have been scouting several potential targets, including US bases, where they gathered information related to an attack.

The main defendant is also accused of having fought between 2014 and 2016 for an armed separatist brigade of the “Donetsk People’s Republic” – a region that declared independence in 2014 and was later illegally annexed by Russian President Vladimir Putin.

According to information obtained by German public broadcaster ARD, his activities for the separatist region drew the attention of security authorities, which later led to the revelation of his alleged spy activities.

“Since Russia’s murderous attack on Ukraine, our security authorities have ramped up all protective measures against hybrid threats from the Russian regime,” said Faeser.

“The task now is to clarify the background and connections of this case,” she added.

(Oliver Noyan | Euractiv.de)

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