German spy chief warns ‘shadow war’ with Russia is escalating

Germany has repeatedly accused Russia of waging a “hybrid” campaign of espionage, sabotage and other disruptions — charges Moscow has vehemently denied.(AFP) — Germany’s foreign intelligence chief warned Monday that the country risks being drawn into a conflict with Russia as hybrid attacks ordered by Moscow increase.Martin Jaeger, head of Germany’s BND foreign intelligence agency, told lawmakers that Russia’s undeclared “shadow war” against Germany and its allies was escalating and had “taken on a new, more dangerous character.”“Germany is at risk of being drawn into a violent conflict with Russia,” he said at a hearing of parliament’s intelligence oversight committee in Berlin.“No other country currently poses such a direct, comprehensive, and concrete threat to Germany,” he added.Jaeger said Germany had “become a major obstacle to Russia’s projection of hegemonic power in Europe — and, consequently, a target of Russian actions.”Germany has repeatedly accused Russia of waging a “hybrid” campaign of espionage, sabotage and other disruptions — charges Moscow has vehemently denied.Berlin has invested record sums in rebuilding its military to deter Russia and is among Ukraine’s largest supporters in its war with Moscow.German Chancellor Friedrich Merz made an unannounced visit Sunday to Kyiv, where he offered further military aid to Ukraine and vowed to continue supporting the country.Threat of more ‘little green men’Jaeger said Russia is targeting Germany because it serves as the main hub for European support for Ukraine.“If Germany were to falter, the whole of Europe — and Europe’s support for Ukraine — would begin to slide. That is the axis of attack Russia is targeting and pursuing,” he said.Still, Jaeger called it “a grand illusion” to believe Germany’s confrontation with Russia would end if the war in Ukraine ends.A Ukrainian defeat, meanwhile, “would completely alter the security architecture” in Europe and leave Berlin facing “a host of massive problems,” he said.The intelligence chief said his agency currently sees “no indication” of plans for a major Russian military attack on a NATO member but warned that “low-level Russian military activities could occur, particularly in the Baltic states.”There, he warned, Russia might launch “targeted, smaller-scale actions” similar to the deployment of masked soldiers in unmarked uniforms, often referred to as “little green men,” in Crimea during Russia’s 2014 annexation of the peninsula.The aim would not be to provoke a full-scale conflict with NATO, Jaeger said, “but rather to test NATO and see how the alliance responds to such incursions.”Intelligence agencies are playing an essential role in this “shadow war,” Jaeger added, stressing the importance of a major reform of Germany’s intelligence agencies approved earlier this year that allowed German spies to engage in more aggressive covert actions beyond gathering information.Sinan Selen, head of Germany’s BfV domestic intelligence agency, stressed that Russian operations are extending far beyond conventional espionage to “sabotage and assassinations.”“The defence industry and military infrastructure are in the crosshairs,” Selen said, adding that Moscow “is already accepting the risk of potential civilian casualties” in its violent campaign against Germany.Subscribe to our free newslettersOur weekly newsletter Closing Arguments offers the latest about ongoing trials, major litigation and rulings in courthouses around the U.S. and the world, while the monthly Under the Lights dishes the legal dirt from Hollywood, sports, Big Tech and the arts.Additional Reads