German prosecutors on Thursday said that two men had were arrested on suspicion of spying for Russia. Photo by Ronald Wittek/EPA-EFE
Two men with dual German-Russian citizenship were arrested in a suspected plot to sabotage two U.S. military bases in the country in connection with its support of Ukraine, prosecutors said Thursday.
The men, identified as Dieter S and Alexander J, were arrested last week and their homes and offices were raided as they were suspected of working for a foreign secret service. Advertisement
Dieter S was charged in Germany for “conspiring to cause an explosive attack and arson, acting as an agent for sabotage purposes and security-endangering collection of intelligence on military installations.”
Alexander J is suspected of supporting Dieter S from March. He is accused of espionage on behalf of a foreign service.
Prosecutors said Dieter S had contact with a “person who is connected to the Russian secret service” since last October.
“The actions were intended in particular to undermine military support provided to Ukraine from Germany against the Russian war of aggression,” prosecutors said.
“Against this background, the accused stated to his counterpart that he was willing to use explosion and arson attacks, especially on infrastructure used for military purposes and industrial sites in Germany.” Advertisement
The United States is the top supplier of weapons to Ukraine followed by Germany. A domestic debate has continued in Germany over whether it should be doing more given its proximity to the fighting.
Kremlin lead spokesman Dmitry Peskov said during a news briefing on Thursday that he had no information on the arrests.
