Chancellor Friedrich Merz on Thursday called for stronger intelligence services that reflect Germany’s size and economic muscle at a time of heightened threats to Europe.

“Rarely in the history of the Federal Republic has the security situation been so serious. The foundations of the European security architecture, which have enabled us to live in freedom, peace, and prosperity for decades, have become fragile,” Merz said at the inauguration of Martin Jäger as the new president of Germany’s Foreign Intelligence Service, the BND.

“Given the responsibility we bear in Europe in view of our size and economic strength, it is therefore our goal to ensure that the BND performs at the very highest level in terms of intelligence,” he added.

Germany’s security agencies have long depended on U.S. intelligence help to track terrorist threats, cyberattacks and espionage activities, while Europe now confronts a belligerent Russia and its allies.

Jäger, 61, was appointed on Sept. 4 replacing long-serving chief Bruno Kahl. A seasoned diplomat, he previously represented Germany in Iraq and Afghanistan, and most recently served as ambassador to Ukraine.

Since taking office months ago, Merz himself has become a primary target for Russian disinformation networks. Experts and intelligence officials link the campaigns, including fabricated stories, fake websites and AI-generated videos, to his outspoken support for Kyiv as it resists the Kremlin’s aggression.

“In Germany, we are now fending off hybrid attacks against our infrastructure on a daily basis; acts of sabotage, espionage, disinformation campaigns,” Merz said during his speech on Thursday. He warned of “systemic rivals and adversaries” becoming “increasingly aggressive” in their tactics.

“A paradigm shift in foreign and security policy” is necessary to overcome such threats, Merz said. “We have very, very good security agencies in Germany. But our sovereignty in Germany and in Europe depends not least on us becoming even better.”