The German government summoned Russian Ambassador Sergei Nechayev this Friday after German secret services attributed clearly the responsibility of Russia in a cyberattack against German air traffic control in 2024 and a disinformation campaign on the dates preceding the general elections last February.
“Russia threatens our security, not only with its war of aggression against Ukraine, but also here in Germany. That is why we summoned the Russian ambassador to the Foreign Ministry this morning and made it clear to him that we are closely watching what Russia is doing and that we will take action on this. “Russia’s unacceptable actions have consequences,” said Martin Giese, spokesman for German diplomacy, during a regular press conference.
At the same time, he expressed the German government’s firm condemnation of “the repeated and unacceptable attacks perpetrated by Russian state-controlled agents” and assured that Germany would continue to strengthen its support for Ukraine and its deterrence and defense measures.Likewise, in close coordination with its European partners, a series of countermeasures are being adopted. “so that Russia pays the price for its hybrid actions”.
Furthermore, at the European level, new individual sanctions are supported against hybrid actors, with consequences such as the entry ban on certain people and the freezing of assets. Concretely, Giese clarified that, on the basis of the exhaustive analysis of the German intelligence services, the government was able “clearly recognize the signature and demonstrate Moscow’s responsibility”both in the cyberattack against German air traffic control and in the disinformation campaign preceding the elections to the Bundestag (Lower House of the German Parliament).
“Information from our intelligence services shows that the Russian military intelligence service GRU is responsible for this attack” said Giese, referring to the aforementioned cyberattack on German aviation security in August 2024, which he said can clearly be attributed to the hacker collective APT28, also known as Fancy Bear.
Furthermore, the German government can assert “on a binding basis” that through the Storm Campaign of 1516, Russia attempted to “influence and destabilize the last elections in the Bundestag as well as the internal affairs of the Federal Republic of Germany”, he underlined. More specifically, he mentioned “reliable information” that behind this are the Moscow think tank Center of Geopolitical Expertise and the Double-Headed Eagle Movement, “supported by the Russian military secret service GRU”.
“The objective of this cyberattack and the Russian computer attacks is clear. It’s about dividing societyarouse distrust, provoke rejection and weaken confidence in democratic institutions. “This selective manipulation of information adds to a series of activities by Russia aimed at undermining confidence in democratic institutions and processes in Germany,” he denounced.
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