Intelligence chief says Germany is engaged in 'shadow war' with Russia

The German intelligence services believe that Germany must become significantly more resilient, particularly in the face of the threat posed by Russia.

"Russia is waging a shadow war against us," Martin Jäger, president of the international Federal Intelligence Service (BND), said during a public hearing of the Bundestag's Parliamentary Oversight Committee.

This involves, for example, attempts at intimidation, against which, Jäger said, the intelligence services are "the first line of defence."

The president of the domestic intelligence service, formally known as the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution (BfV), Sinan Selen, told the committee that Russia is demonstrating its willingness to engage in sabotage and murder.

The spectrum, he said, also includes disinformation campaigns and attempted attacks, such as the one at Leipzig airport in August when a drone rigged with explosives was discovered next to Ukrainian cargo aircraft.

"We have already achieved some successes in thwarting these threats," Selen added. However, he believes the situation is escalating, which is why the German intelligence services must align their capabilities with those of other European partner services.

Selen, Jäger and the president of the Military Counter-Intelligence Service (MAD), Martina Rosenberg, are normally only available to answer questions from members of the Parliamentary Oversight Committee in closed-door sessions. A public hearing takes place just once a year.

So far in this parliamentary term, only lawmakers from the conservative bloc, the Social Democrats and the Greens have been represented on the committee, which keeps a close eye on the intelligence services. Candidates from the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) and the hard-left The Left parliamentary groups failed to secure enough votes.