German government plans tougher penalties for foreign agents

Anyone caught acting as an agent for another country in Germany will face up to 10 years in prison or double the current penalty, according to a draft law approved by the German Cabinet on Wednesday.

The legislation providing for the tougher penalties would apply to anyone who agrees to carry out activities on behalf of a foreign intelligence service. The German parliament or Bundestag must still approve the plan.

Most such agents currently face a sentence of up to five years, except in particularly serious cases. A former employee of the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) politician Maximilian Krah was convicted on Tuesday of spying for China and received a four and a half year prison sentence. 

Due to the increased penalties, intelligence activities will be classified as particularly serious crimes, for which covert investigative measures such as online searches and wiretapping in residential premises will be permitted.

In addition, according to the draft law, the intelligence services will then be able to legally transmit relevant findings to the federal and state law enforcement authorities.

The planned reform is also intended to facilitate the prosecution of preparations for terrorist attacks, which the Justice Ministry says is needed because attackers have recently often used everyday objects such as cars rather than weapons.

"Extremists, terrorist networks and authoritarian states are working  against us – and our free society," said Justice Minister Stefanie Hubig in a statement issued by her ministry. She said the government was responding to the increased threat, which has been evident since Russia's attack on Ukraine in 2022.

The Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution, Germany's domestic intelligence agency, recently issued a public warning about attempts by Russian intelligence services to recruit so-called "disposable agents" to carry out espionage and sabotage in Germany.