The German Foreign Office said Friday it summoned the Russian ambassador, Sergei Nechayev, over allegations of repeated hybrid attacks on Germany.
The move followed what officials described as mounting evidence of coordinated Russian activity aimed at undermining Germany's internal stability.
"The goal of these Russian cyber and disinformation attacks is clear: It is to divide society, stir up mistrust, provoke rejection, and weaken confidence in democratic institutions," Foreign Office spokesperson Martin Giese said.
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The Foreign Office listed some cases that it said were perpetrated by Moscow.
In one instance, Giese said, a cyberattack against Germany's air traffic control authority in August 2024 could be clearly attributed to the Russian hacker group "Fancy Bear."
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In another case, Berlin claimed it was now certain that Russia attempted to influence the most recent general election. According to Germany, this was done through the propagandist group "Storm 1516,โ which creates and spreads online disinformation to further the interests of the Russian government.
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Two days before the early federal election in February, the government said security agencies had identified fake videos alleging ballot manipulation as part of a Russian disinformation effort.
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Russia is accused of various acts of hybrid warfare โ actions that fall below the threshold of open military conflict but are designed to weaken states politically. They include:
- Hacking government ministries, parliaments, and defense institutions
- Targeting critical infrastructure such as energy grids, transport systems and air traffic control
- Spreading disinformation during election campaigns
- Amplifying fake stories or manipulated content via social media
- Using bot networks and troll farms to influence voter sentiment
- Targeting specific candidates seen as unfavorable to Moscow
- Acts of sabotage against railways, cables, pipelines, or military logistics
- Surveillance or targeting of infrastructure linked to Ukraine support
- Encouraging or facilitating irregular migration toward EU border
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I'm sure the Russians are quaking in their boots after receiving their strongly worded letter.
Exactly. This is like a treating one infected wound with topical agent while having sepsis. Uh, if Russia stops spreading fake news on Facebook, what about the US, or China, or Turkey, or Israel. The common variable is Facebook, Meta making money off this activity and the activity being aligned with Meta's anti-regulation interests. Social media corporations are the systemic issue here. Legislate responsibility for moderation for corporations operating in Germany and this shit is gonna drop off a cliff, by any actor.
Not that I would generally oppose higher enforceable accountability for social media platforms, but how would 'this shit gonna drop off a cliff' as Russia is
Even the points related to social media would not help, as Russia would certainly continue its influence campaigns.
It must be clearly said that the main problem here is Russia and its 'decisive enabler,' China.
Clearly I addressed a specific part. One that has an outsized effect over the German system via its political system. If you can't see how those other aspects can be tackled inside Germany (and the EU) and why you can't rely on a conpetitor to stop, I can't help you. You're arguing to get an attacker to stop instead of tackling the vulnerabilities. That's not how security works.
Just in case anyone else is reading this and got confused - Israel and US are also actively running disinformation campaigns in Germany today. So if for some reason Russia stops doing it today, the problem remains as the US and Israel would continue and they don't have Germany's best interests in mind.
Also if you're going to pretend to engage in good faith, it helps not to downvote the person you're replying to.
E: Downvoting harder with your alt accounts isn't doing you any favours either.