Lavrov: German accusations over Leipzig drone incident 'a real war'

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has described the German allegations against Moscow regarding the attempted bomb attack at Leipzig Airport as the "start of a real war."

Speaking to Russian state television on Sunday, the diplomat said: "Leipzig Airport (...) They found a drone there. They said it was a Russian drone. Nobody has clarified this. Strictly speaking, this is the start of a real war."

Lavrov said the German sanctions, such as the closure of the Russian consulate in Bonn and the Russian House cultural centre in Berlin, reminded him of how World War II began.

The website of the news programme Vesti quoted him as saying the Germans apparently wanted war again. The Russian foreign minister is known for his strong choice of words.

Germany investigated for four weeks

At Leipzig/Halle Airport in early August, a drone carrying an explosive device was found near a Ukrainian transport aircraft. There was no explosion. Two further drones were found later.

After four weeks of investigation, the German government attributed the attempted attack to Russian intelligence services in early September.

Berlin believes that, because of its support for Ukraine, which has been fending off Russia's full-scale invasion since 2022, Germany is a target of covert operations by Russian intelligence services.