Germany in Moscow's Crosshairs: Sabotage, Drones, and Agents
Russian intelligence services have intensified their hybrid war on German soil, including sabotage on military ships, package bombs, and drone overflights, German officials warn.
Russian intelligence services have intensified their hybrid war on German soil, including sabotage on military ships, package bombs, and drone overflights, German officials warn.
In recent months, Germany has found itself in the crosshairs of increasingly intense hybrid warfare, which, according to security services' assessments, is orchestrated by Russian intelligence. Sabotage, drone overflights, and assassination attempts reminiscent of Cold War tactics have become routine, targeting both civilian and military objectives.
"They were preparing sabotage against two corvettes in shipyards. Low-level agents are suspected," said Lieutenant Colonel Thilo Geiger of the Institute for Peace Research and Security Policy, commenting on the arrest of two workers at the Port of Hamburg in February 2026. A Romanian and a Greek national were detained following a series of damages to military vessels.
This is just one in a series of incidents, including a planned bomb attack. In April 2024, three Germans of Russian origin were arrested on suspicion of plotting a bomb attack on a U.S. base in Germany. Martin Heinemann, spokesperson for the BND, Germany's foreign intelligence service, leaves no doubt about who is behind it. "All of this is part of a catalog of actions carried out by the Russian Federation. We are facing an adversary that knows no boundaries or rules," Heinemann said.
Particularly concerning is the recruitment method of so-called "expendable" agents, who often are not even aware of who they are working for. According to estimates, hundreds of such low-level operatives are active across Europe, paid in cryptocurrencies for their services. Recruitment often takes place via social media, with minimal ideological motivation.
One example of this modus operandi is the trial that began on Saturday, August 8, 2026, in Stuttgart. Three defendants are charged with sending package bombs, an operation inspired by the DHL affair of 2024, when cargo packages suddenly caught fire on flights to Leipzig, Warsaw, and Birmingham.
Lawyers for the defendants claim their clients were unaware of the true purpose of their actions. "For my client, it was just a normal favor for a friend. He had no details. My client didn't know it was a sabotage project," said Martin Heising, attorney for defendant Vladyslav T.
Expert Nathalie Vogel of the Institute for World Politics in Washington told France Info how recruitment works: "Recruitment happens via social media. Payments are made in cryptocurrencies. Ideological motivation is minimal in such operations."
To counter the growing threat, Germany has taken concrete steps. "To counter these saboteurs, Germany has established a coordination center to combat hybrid attacks with more money and resources, especially in the intelligence sector. The country wants to better protect its sensitive sites," reports Lionel Feuerstein, a France Télévisions correspondent in Berlin.
Vogel concludes that attacks on Germany, as the second-largest donor of aid to Ukraine after the U.S., will not cease anytime soon. This escalation of hybrid warfare poses a serious security challenge for the entire European Union.
