Putin's spies under pressure

The Russian embassy in Berlin is considered the center of espionage in Germany. A year ago, Germany canceled its hospitality to forty Russian spies. Soon, that number could increase.

In February 2022, not even a few hours had passed since the first Russian rockets hit Ukraine, and the police in Berlin blocked access to the Russian embassy. The Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations provides for such protection of diplomatic missions.

But Germany's attitude towards that embassy near the Brandenburg Gate has changed considerably. Berlin sees in that embassy Central Russian espionage. In April 2022, Germany declared 40 Russian diplomats undesirable. Allegedly, they were members of the secret service who were hiding behind diplomatic status.

Politics implemented what the security authorities had prepared. Germany has left behind its naive attitude towards Russia. According to the claims of the German media, the level of espionage activities of the Russian embassy has allegedly decreased since last year. But since it is at war, the Kremlin is looking for as much information as possible, so it collects it in another way. At the same time, Russian spies are taking on an ever-increasing risk.

Fewer diplomats

Germany is considering a principled reduction in the number of diplomats in both Berlin and Moscow. Berlin thus intends to prevent Moscow from simply sending other spies. The number of Russian diloms would even be further reduced. By withdrawing German diplomats from Moscow, he wants to prevent their possible expulsion as a reaction from the Kremlin.

When asked by journalists, the German Ministry of Foreign Affairs did not deny such plans. It is only stated that there is currently no such intention. Since the beginning of the Russian attack on Ukraine, the Ministry, headed by the green politician Anelena Berbok, has repeatedly invited the Russian ambassador to Berlin to speak.
The fight for sensitive information and influence

It seems that the days when members of the embassy were able to work on spreading influence without an eye have passed. Examples from the previous period are numerous.

The Russian diplomat Daniil B. connected with young German politicians and advocated for the policy of the Alternative for Germany in favor of the Kremlin. And the former attaché of the Russian embassy was one of the founders of the Eastern Institute, which became a gathering place for pro-Russian lobbyists.

Two current cases show the espionage significance of the Russian embassy. Former reserve officer Ralf G. allegedly spied for years for the Russian military intelligence service. And the Russian attaché for the air force and navy made his acquaintance with him at a ceremony organized for those families in Bonn.

At the end of 2022, Ralf G. was sentenced to a suspended prison sentence of one year and nine months. In February, a former associate of the British embassy in Berlin was sentenced to 13 years and two months in prison in London for passing on "a significant amount of sensitive information" to Russia. The British and Russian embassies in Berlin are in the neighborhood. The material was allegedly passed on by a British spy to the Russian military attaché.

400 Russian diplomats expelled from European countries

It was apparently not difficult for the German intelligence structures to list 40 names of Russian spies. Allegedly, one such list contains 100 names. First of all, those who acted unscrupulously, such as one person who interfered in the Nord Stream project, were expelled from the country. Others can stay for now, even the man in connection with the "mole" discovered in London. The military attaché is the so-called resident with several other high-ranking diplomats. These are intelligence officers who are officially registered with the host and maintain a connection with the domicile intelligence structure.

Even when they are involved in espionage, it is important to the German side that they have someone to talk to. This is the reason why the Russian expert in influence operations can stay in Germany, despite the great suspicion of the German security structures.

In Europe, 400 Russian spies were expelled from a number of countries last year. Those countries cooperated closely. The informal platform for this cooperation is the Bern Club, where exchanges are organized between the internal intelligence services of the European Union, Switzerland, Norway and Great Britain.

The drone is looking for Ukrainian mobile phones

It is evident from the beginning that there is enormous pressure on Russian intelligence to deliver results related to military objectives, but also related to energy. German security guards are noticing increased activity in the vicinity of Bundeswehr and NATO facilities.

There are concerns that Russian intelligence could plant transmitters in Western weapons systems to later locate them in Ukraine. Likewise, it is possible for drones to capture the signals of the mobile phones of Ukrainian soldiers who are training in Germany, in order to find these signals later in Ukraine.

A vehicle with Russian diplomatic plates even appeared near a German barracks. However, it was so conspicuous that it could have been a provocation or distraction. The German Constitutional Protection states that the Russian side knows exactly that German counter-espionage has a limited number of people at its disposal.

Afraid of attack

The German Constitutional Protection Service predicted last year that the Russian secret services would send more and more disguised sleeper agents, who operate without diplomatic status, often living in the country for years with a false identity. Last year, such spies were exposed in the Netherlands, Slovenia, Norway and Greece.

Allegedly, the Russian embassy in Berlin was replaced by personnel just before the start of the war. It seems that the Kremlin is also worried about possible flyovers, so Russian diplomatic representatives go on assignments in twos or threes. The pressure to get results is so great in the Russian secret services that spies seem willing to take extremely high risks.

An example is the "mole" in the German intelligence service BND. That German intelligence officer, Karsten L., was offered 400,000 euros by Russian intelligence to quickly deliver information about the war in Ukraine, including the positions of American multi-barrel rocket launchers. After the discovery of the "mole", the German counter-espionage was surprised by the Russian intelligence officers, since in professional intelligence circles no one "consumes" such a high-ranking double agent, but slowly prepares or "cultivates" him, as the intelligence officers know how to say.