Germany has accused Russia of carrying out what the country’s interior minister called a “hybrid attack” involving an explosives-laden drone that disrupted flights at Leipzig airport in early August. Berlin said the incident was part of a campaign of destabilizing operations against Europe. German authorities said they would close the Russian Consulate in Bonn and terminate the lease on a Russian cultural center in Berlin following the attempted drone attack at the airport. The statement by German government officials on September 1 came as authorities responded to what they called a sabotage attack involving several explosive devices placed near a coal-fired power plant about 100 kilometers southeast of Berlin.
So far, no country or group has been blamed for the incident, in which officials said at least one improvised explosive device exploded. In the Leipzig incident, a drone carrying explosives was found near Ukrainian cargo planes at the airport in eastern Germany. “After evaluating the technology used as well as intelligence information, the government concludes that Russia is responsible for the hybrid attack in Leipzig on August 4,” said German Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt. “We do not see the Leipzig incident as an isolated incident, but see it in the context of other hybrid actions,” he said. “We assume that Germany is the target of other hybrid attacks by Russia.”
Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul said the Russian Consulate in Bonn would be closed later this month and the lease for the Russia House cultural center in Berlin would be canceled. “We are tightening entry controls for Russian citizens,” he said, adding that Germany would propose adding more Russian individuals to the lists of people subject to sanctions by the European Union.
Russia’s ambassador to Germany was seen entering the Foreign Ministry in Berlin around the time the announcements were made. There was no immediate comment from the Kremlin or Russian diplomats. The accusation comes at a time when concerns about Russian hybrid operations and the possibility that Russian President Vladimir Putin is seeking to test NATO’s resolve with more traditional attacks, potentially against the alliance’s Baltic members, persist. At least one of the purposes of CIA Director John Ratcliffe’s visit to Moscow, where he met with intelligence officials on August 25, was to warn Russia against attacking NATO countries, sources familiar with the visit told Radio Free Europe and other media outlets, speaking on condition of anonymity.
NATO and the European Union immediately expressed support for Germany and said Russia’s actions would not intimidate them into reducing support for Ukraine, which is defending itself from a full-scale Russian invasion now in its fifth year. NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte pledged “full solidarity” and said the Western military alliance would “continue to strengthen our ability to deter and defend all allies against any threat – including malicious actions such as those seen in Leipzig and elsewhere.” “Russia’s attempts to intimidate us, to undermine our unity and our willingness to support Ukraine are futile and will fail,” Rutte wrote in X. “Our support for Ukraine is unwavering, as is our ironclad commitment to NATO’s collective defense.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen also said in a post on X that the EU stands in “full solidarity” with Germany and declared that “hybrid attacks will not go without a clear response.” “Russia is trying to sow distrust and fear in our societies. But it will fail. And we will stand by Ukraine for as long as necessary,” von der Leyen said. She said EU foreign ministers would prepare “additional sanctions” against Moscow at a meeting in Ireland on September 1-2. The EU has already prepared new sanctions against up to 1.600 Russian individuals and entities – mainly in the Russian defense sector – with the proposal that EU member states unanimously adopt these measures in October.
On September 2, EU ambassadors are also expected to sanction 10 Russian nationals and 17 entities involved in the abduction of Ukrainian children and decide on the extension of asset freezes and visa bans that the bloc has imposed on more than 3.000 individuals or entities since the start of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Russia had previously denied involvement in the Leipzig incident, which has raised concerns after months of reports of suspicious drones over military and industrial facilities in Germany. Police used a robot to disable the device near a Ukrainian cargo plane. The German military and NATO allies transport military supplies through the airport, which also serves as a base for Ukrainian carrier Antonov Airlines.