The German government has described the incident as a “new level of risk” but has declined to say who it believes was responsible for the device.
US intelligence officials believe Russia was behind an attack at a German airport last week involving a drone carrying explosives, US media reported, while Berlin remained silent over the possible perpetrator.
The security emergency last week prompted Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt to cut short his summer holiday in Italy and rush to the scene in the eastern city of Leipzig, where he spoke of a “new level of risk” for Germany.
Dobrindt described the incident, in which a quadcopter carrying Semtex plastic explosives was found near a Ukrainian cargo aircraft at a major logistics and military transport hub, as part of a “professional hybrid threat scenario” carried out by a well-resourced foreign actor.
As German investigators rushed to identify those responsible, the tabloid Bild reported that authorities had found DNA traces at the scene matching a sample from an incendiary device sent via DHL that exploded at Leipzig Airport in July 2024.
Five men suspected of involvement in a related series of incidents involving the shipment of incendiary devices by post are currently on trial in Lithuania. A court hearing last week revealed that the aircraft targeted by one of the incendiary devices escaped being set ablaze in mid-flight only because it had been delayed. Lithuanian prosecutors allege that the suspects were recruited by Russian intelligence.
Although lawmakers and security analysts have pointed the finger at the Kremlin over the latest incident in Leipzig, German government officials have not made a specific accusation against Moscow.
However, The Wall Street Journal cited US officials familiar with intelligence reports concerning the incident as saying that the drone was likely linked to the Russian government.
CNN reported that Washington had concluded the drone originated from a Russian intelligence service, citing a US defense official in Europe who noted that the explosive material found on the drone appeared to indicate a military manufacturer.
German officials said the drone managed to penetrate Leipzig Airport’s security defenses.
It was eventually grounded after an alert airport bus driver carrying a group of passengers late at night spotted and reported it, around four hours after it had breached the facility’s security perimeter. Authorities said the intervention may have prevented an incident involving multiple casualties.
That same night, a DHL cargo aircraft that had been forced to abort its landing at the airport after the drone was detected collided with an unidentified object in the air while departing. It later landed safely elsewhere with minor damage.
Investigators now believe the aircraft struck a second hostile drone that was flying in the area that night.
The following day, drones were detected over a military installation in western Germany where components of US-made Patriot air-defense systems are located. Ukraine has repeatedly requested additional Patriot systems to help protect itself against Russian aerial bombardment.
In response to the growing threat, Germany’s Interior Ministry said on Monday that it plans to double the size of its federal anti-drone specialist unit to 300 personnel, while increasing the number of operational bases from four to eight.
Germany and other European countries have long reported suspicious and unauthorized drone flights over airports, military facilities, ports and logistics companies, and have accused Russian agents of espionage as well as of conducting targeted campaigns of sabotage, destabilization and intimidation.
Moscow has denied the allegations. Late last week, its embassy in Berlin described any suggestion that Russia was involved in the Leipzig case as a “hastily fabricated provocation” that “serves only the interests of Kyiv and the militaristic wing of the European political establishment.”
Berlin is Ukraine’s largest national supplier of military assistance in its defense against Russia’s invasion.
Next month, Germany will hold three important state elections in eastern states, where public support for defensive assistance to Kyiv remains contested and concerns about “provoking” Moscow are high.
Polls indicate that the pro-Russian far-right party Alternative for Germany (AfD) is positioned to perform strongly in all three contests, amid reports of Russian disinformation campaigns targeting its main rivals, Germany’s established democratic parties.
The opposition Greens have criticized the government for not naming or blaming Russia at this stage of the Leipzig investigation.
Political scientist Wolfgang Schröder of the University of Kassel in western Germany said two factors could explain Berlin’s restraint.
First, Russia was initially identified as the main suspect following the sabotage of the Nord Stream gas pipelines in 2022, which German prosecutors now say was ordered by “Ukrainian state authorities.”
More importantly, Schröder said, were the unpredictable consequences of accusing Moscow of a failed military attack on German soil amid warnings of escalating tensions.
“If it were defined as an act of aggression—that is, a military attack by Russia against critical infrastructure (in Germany)—then we would be on the threshold of entering a state of war, and that would have consequences not only diplomatically but also in relation to NATO,” he told local broadcaster n-tv.
“A cautious approach is being pursued here precisely because the aim is to prevent involvement. Otherwise, this could become a European security issue—a NATO security issue—and that would almost certainly take Germany’s involvement in the armed conflict between Russia and Ukraine to an entirely new level.”
