FILE — Russian ambassador in Germany Sergey Nechayev, center, attends a wreath laying ceremony to commemorate the end of World War II 77 years ago at the Soviet War Memorial at the district Treptow in Berlin, Germany, May 9, 2022. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber, File)
FILE — Russian ambassador in Germany Sergey Nechayev, center, attends a wreath laying ceremony to commemorate the end of World War II 77 years ago at the Soviet War Memorial at the district Treptow in Berlin, Germany, May 9, 2022. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber, File)
BERLIN (AP) — Germany summoned Russia's ambassador Friday following accusations of sabotage, cyberattacks and election interference, an official said.
The German government has also accused Moscow of perpetrating disinformation campaigns.
“The goal of these Russian cyber and disinformation attacks is clear: It is to divide society, stir up mistrust, provoke rejection, and weaken confidence in democratic institutions,†German foreign ministry spokesperson Martin Giese said.
“This targeted manipulation of information is one of a wide range of activities by Russia aimed at undermining confidence in democratic institutions and processes in Germany," he said during a government news conference.
German officials have previously accused Russia of hybrid warfare attacks to destabilize Europe. Moscow didn't immediately return a request for comment Friday.
Giese said that the shadowy known as GRU was behind a 2024 cyberattack against German air traffic control. The foreign ministry says GRU, which has been , was responsible for the attack that was allegedly perpetrated by hacker collective APT28, also known as Fancy Bear.
have also been linked to global cyber intrusions, including in the 2016 U.S. election, where they were accused of aiding U.S. President Donald Trump by .
Giese also said investigators believe GRU also attempted to destabilize and influence Germany's last federal election, , through a campaign called "Storm 1516."
“Our services’ analysis shows that the campaign spreads artificially generated, pseudo-investigative research, deepfake image sequences, pseudo-journalistic websites, and fabricated witness statements on various platforms,†he said.
Russia will face a series of countermeasures for its hybrid warfare, Giese said.
“The German government condemns the repeated and unacceptable attacks by state-controlled Russian actors in the strongest possible terms," he said. “We will continue to strengthen our support for Ukraine and our deterrence and defense.â€
The summons occurred Friday as the European Union to ensure that Hungary and Slovakia, both with Moscow-friendly governments, can’t prevent the billions of euros from being used to support Ukraine.
Using a special procedure meant for economic emergencies, the EU blocked the assets until Russia gives up and compensates its neighbor for the heavy damage that it has inflicted for almost four years.
It’s a key step that will allow EU leaders to work out at a summit next week how to use the tens of billions of euros in Russian Central Bank assets to underwrite to help Ukraine meet its financial and military needs over the next two years.
