Germany's Military Classifies Russian Sabotage Threat as 'Significant' for the First Time After Explosive-Laden Drone Found Near Wunstorf Air Base
Germany's armed forces have classified the threat of Russian sabotage against Bundeswehr troops and facilities as "significant" for the first time, the second-highest level on their internal threat scale, according to a Bundeswehr assessment reported by broadcasters WDR and the Sueddeutsche Zeitung on Wednesday, October 21. A defence ministry spokesperson confirmed the assessment, telling reporters: "We are noting that we face a significant sabotage threat overall for the Bundeswehr." The reassessment was triggered by the discovery in mid-September of a crashed drone carrying a tin of high explosives near the Wunstorf air base in Lower Saxony.
The internal document said Russia had crossed "a previously anticipated red line of harmful intent involving kinetic and/or lethal effects" against Germany and the Bundeswehr through the use of weaponised drones. Investigators believe the Wunstorf drone was aimed at Bundeswehr aircraft and resembled an explosive-laden drone used in a failed attack at Leipzig/Halle airport in August, an incident Germany has blamed on Russia; Moscow has denied involvement and consistently rejects accusations of sabotage or hybrid attacks in Europe. The report also cited drone overflights of the Arrow 3 missile defence site in Saxony-Anhalt and a camouflaged camera found filming a strategically important railway station in Minden, Westphalia, with intelligence services expecting the situation to worsen in the short term.
The defence ministry spokesperson said preventive measures were being tailored to individual sites, ranging from increased guard patrols to infrared cameras and fence surveillance. The assessment came just over a week after Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt said Germany faced a "shadow war" and called for expanded intelligence powers. Chancellor Friedrich Merz said on Wednesday that Russian disinformation and hybrid attacks posed the biggest threat to Germany and that the public was still underestimating it. (Compiled from Reuters, October 21, based on reporting by WDR and the Sueddeutsche Zeitung)
Source: GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 德国联邦国防军士兵演训实景。图片来源：Wikimedia Commons 文件 Two Bundeswehr soldiers fire their weapons.JPG，Gertrud Zach（美国陆军）摄，Public domain（公有领域）授权
