The German government led by Chancellor Friedrich Merz is considering measures to limit access by members of the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party to the country’s classified operational defense plan, known as OPLAN Deutschland. The roughly 1,000-page document was drawn up in 2024 after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine....
Germany records rise in Russian disinformation targeting Chancellor Merz
Germany’s Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution (BfV), the country’s domestic intelligence and counterintelligence agency, has recorded a marked increase in recent months in Russian disinformation directed at Chancellor Friedrich Merz. The Handelsblatt newspaper reported this on 16 September, citing a statement from the agency. According to the...
Germany is checking hospital readiness for war
Across Germany, government agencies and hospitals are assessing whether the healthcare system could withstand a major armed conflict, a mass influx of wounded, and drone strikes. Bloomberg reported this on September 16. According to Bundeswehr estimates, in a war on NATO’s eastern flank, 300 to 1,000 wounded service members could...
German military counterintelligence says sabotage and hybrid-attack threats have risen
Over the past year, the threat of sabotage and hybrid attacks in Germany has increased markedly. That assessment appears in the 2025 annual report of the Bundeswehr Military Counterintelligence Service (MAD). The service links a substantial share of suspicious sabotage cases to Russia with a high degree of probability, Der...
In Germany, more than 31% of volunteers deemed unfit for Bundeswehr service
According to internal statistics from Germany’s Ministry of Defence, more than 31% of those seeking to join the new military service were found unfit during medical examinations in the second quarter of 2026. Der Spiegel reported this citing the ministry’s data. The figures were obtained by the Left Party parliamentary...
Volkswagen plant in Germany to be converted for air defence production
German carmaker Volkswagen has signed an agreement to convert its factory in Osnabrück, Lower Saxony, from car manufacturing to the production of air defence system components. It is the first time an automobile plant in Germany is being turned into a defence industry site. Under the deal announced on Monday,...
Germany is creating mobile police units to defend against drones
Germany has begun forming mobile units of the Federal Police that will counter drones and protect airports, railway stations, government districts and other strategic sites. German Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt announced the plan. Under the Interior Ministry’s plan, rapidly deployable special groups will be stationed in nine key cities: Berlin,...
AfD wins Saxony-Anhalt election
The far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) won the Saxony-Anhalt state parliament election after all ballots were counted, taking 43.8% of the vote, the state election commission said. It is the party’s strongest result in any state election and more than double its 20.8% share in 2021. Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s Christian...
Anatomy of the Russian gray zone in Germany and its political effect
On 1 September 2026, the German federal government attributed to the Russian Federation an attempted sabotage using unmanned aerial vehicles at Leipzig Airport. According to assessments by Germany’s interior and foreign ministers, as well as the police investigation, the nature of the means employed and the available intelligence indicate actions...