German intelligence chief: Russia does not hesitate to engage in military confrontation

2025-10-13 17:55:00, Kosova & Bota CNA

German intelligence chief: Russia does not hesitate to engage in military

Germany's intelligence chief warned that Russia poses a direct threat and that the "tense peace" in the European Union could erupt at any moment into a heated confrontation.

Martin Jaeger, head of the BND spy service, told lawmakers that Russia is determined to expand its "sphere of influence further west towards Europe."

"To achieve this goal, Russia will not hesitate to directly confront NATO militarily if necessary," Jaeger said during a conference with lawmakers in Berlin.

Along with Jaeger were the leaders of Germany's domestic and military intelligence services.

Although they mentioned other threats, such as political and religious extremism, it was Russia that dominated their statements.

Jaeger said Germany is "Russia's number one target in Europe," given that it is the EU's largest economy and plays a "leading role in supporting Ukraine."

The warnings come after a series of incidents in the European Union, including the incursion of Russian drones into Poland and the violation of Estonian airspace by Russian fighter jets.

In Germany, Russia is suspected of being behind a series of recent drone incursions, including incidents that disrupted operations at Munich Airport.

German authorities also suspect that Russia is conducting sabotage and disinformation campaigns.

Jaeger, who previously served as Germany's ambassador to Kiev, argued that Russia's ambitions and aggression are not limited to the war in Ukraine.

"We should not sit back and assume that a possible Russian attack will occur earlier than 2029 ," Jaeger said, referring to a previous German intelligence assessment.

"The tools Moscow uses are well-known - attempts to manipulate elections and public opinion, propaganda, provocations, disinformation, espionage, sabotage, violations of airspace by drones and fighter jets, contract killings, the persecution of opposition figures living abroad ," he added.

Sinan Selen, head of Germany's domestic intelligence service (BfV), said the recent drone incidents underscore the potential "hybrid threat" to Germany and its European allies.

"Russia is aggressively pursuing its political ambitions towards Germany, the EU and its Western allies," said Selen, who described Russia's behavior as increasingly escalating.

Faced with the growing Russian threat, German intelligence services are struggling to adapt to the new reality. German lawmakers are preparing a review of the legislation governing the secret services to give them capabilities that would be better suited to confronting threats./ REL