Russia’s attempts to disrupt German society have grown significantly this year, according to Germany’s military counterintelligence chief.

“We are talking about a sharp increase in cases of espionage and hybrid measures,” Martina Rosenberg told German press agency DPA. “The approach is more massive and also more aggressive.”

The number of cases where Russian involvement is suspected has doubled over the first half of this year, DPA reported in their interview with Rosenberg, who is the president of the Militärische Abschirmdienst or Military Counterintelligence Service.

“It’s no secret: As a logistical hub for NATO troop movements and as an active NATO partner Germany is always on the radar for foreign intelligence services,” Rosenberg added, whose words echoed those of Estonia’s spy chief from last year.

Most recently, the German navy has seen sabotage operations on board of ships: broken cables, oil in the water supply or metal shrapnel in a drive train.

Already before Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, covert operations by Russia were occurring in Germany. A German court expelled two Russian diplomats in 2021 over the murder of Georgian citizen, for instance.

The recruits are found online by Russia’s secret service and often unaware of the ultimate goal, like the Ukrainian teenager who caused an explosion in the Ikea store in Lithuania’s capital Vilnius.