A German officer arrested on suspicion of spying for Moscow

Earlier this week, a German officer was arrested on suspicion of spying for Moscow, and it has been revealed that he had access to highly sensitive information during his tenure at the procurement unit of the military.

According to reports from German local media, including Spiegel Online and Zeit newspaper, the individual, identified by prosecutors as Thomas H., worked in the Equipment, Information Technology, and In-Service Support department. This department was responsible for various tasks, including the acquisition of advanced modern warfare systems.

The tasks handled by this department, reported by AFP, encompassed the procurement of technology for surveillance and disruption of adversaries’ radio systems, as well as the capability to disable enemy radio or air shield systems. It was also responsible for modern weapons used by elite commando units.

Citing unnamed security sources, Spiegel indicated that the suspect had significant access to the German military’s electronic capabilities.

In May 2023, the individual reportedly approached the Russian embassy in Berlin and the consulate in Bonn voluntarily, offering his cooperation. He is under suspicion for sharing information about his work within the German military division (Bundeswehr) with Russian diplomatic missions, with the alleged intention of passing it on to a Russian secret service.

Furthermore, it has been reported by Die Zeit and Tagesspiegel that the man has affiliations with Germany’s far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party.

This incident follows closely after the German domestic security agency BfV issued a warning about the heightened risk of an “aggressive Russian espionage operation.” Such reports, as noted by DW, have become more prevalent since Russia’s invasion of neighboring Ukraine in February 2022.

Germany took actions in response to espionage concerns earlier this year when it expelled several Russian diplomats in April. In retaliation, Russia expelled over 20 German diplomats and imposed a cap of 350 German personnel in the country during May.