Key takeaways:
- The Bundeswehr said two drones were seen late Thursday over a military base in Mechernich, near Bonn, and military police were deployed before local police took over.
- A drone loaded with explosives was discovered Tuesday at Leipzig/Halle Airport, which is used by NATO, the German military and Ukraine’s Antonov Airlines.
- Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt said Germany faces daily hybrid warfare, including espionage, sabotage, cyberattacks and covert operations, but did not name any country responsible.
Germany’s military spotted two drones over a western military base days after an explosive-laden drone was discovered at Leipzig/Halle Airport, prompting fresh warnings from Berlin about what officials describe as daily hybrid attacks on the country.
The Bundeswehr confirmed that two drones were seen late Thursday over a base in Mechernich, near Bonn, in the western state of North Rhine-Westphalia. German media reported that the site houses a storage facility for equipment and spare parts used to maintain U.S.-made Patriot air-defence systems.
A spokeswoman for the Bundeswehr Joint Force Command said military police were sent to the base before the matter was handed over to local police. The Bundeswehr declined to comment to the BBC on the ongoing investigation when asked about the suspected origins of the drones seen over Mechernich.
The incident followed the discovery Tuesday of a drone loaded with explosives at Leipzig/Halle Airport in eastern Germany. The airport is used by NATO and the German military and also serves as a base for Ukraine’s Antonov Airlines, the BBC reported.
German Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt told Bild am Sonntag that Germany had become a regular target of destabilising activity by foreign powers.
“We’re not at war, but we are the daily target of hybrid warfare,” Dobrindt said. “Espionage, sabotage, cyberattacks, or covert operations by foreign powers aimed at destabilising Germany or inflicting direct harm are a constant reality.”
Dobrindt did not identify any country behind the alleged attacks. Some German lawmakers have blamed Russia for the Leipzig incident, according to Al Jazeera. The Russian embassy in Berlin on Friday dismissed the episode as a “fabricated provocation” and said it was another example of unsubstantiated accusations against Moscow.
The drone sightings come amid wider concern in Europe over incidents near airports and military sites in countries supporting Ukraine in its war with Russia. NATO and European Union officials have blamed Russia for previous drone sightings, while Moscow has rejected the allegations. Russian officials have previously described such claims as “absurd.”
Germany is planning to strengthen its defences against drones, Bild reported, citing government sources. The newspaper said Dobrindt’s ministry wants to double the federal government’s team of anti-drone experts from 150 to 300 and expand its network of related bases from four to eight.
The Patriot air-defence systems reportedly linked to the Mechernich site have become important to Ukraine’s ability to intercept Russian ballistic missiles since Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky this week appealed to allies for more supplies, warning that Ukraine was running out of interceptor missiles. After initially offering Ukraine a license to make Patriots in early July, U.S. President Donald Trump last week denied any such agreement, the BBC reported.
A separate drone incident occurred Saturday in Bulgaria, where a drone exploded near the Trans-Balkan gas pipeline. Bulgaria’s defence ministry said there was no reason to suspect the incident was intentional, and Ukraine said it was working with Bulgarian authorities to clarify the circumstances.
A series of drone sightings in European airspace last year put the continent on alert and led the EU to discuss a continent-wide “drone wall” of air defences.
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