Germany says Russia responsible for drone attack at Leipzig airport


FILE PHOTO: A police officer in protective clothing walks next to an explosive-disarming robot (EOD) at Leipzig/Halle Airport in Schkeuditz, Germany, August 5, 2026, after the police said explosives experts examined a drone found near a runway, and after a DHL cargo aircraft hit an unknown object as it was climbing away from the airport overnight, prompting an unscheduled landing in Hanover, according to a source familiar with the incident. REUTERS/Axel Schmidt/File Photo

BERLIN, ⁠Sept 1 (Reuters) - The German government said on Tuesday ⁠it assessed that Russia was responsible for an ‌attempted drone attack at Leipzig/Halle airport last month and ordered a series of measures in response, including the closure of a Russian ​cultural centre in Berlin.

Interior Minister Alexander ⁠Dobrindt said intelligence findings ⁠indicated that individuals involved in the attack were acting on ⁠behalf ‌of Russian state agencies.

"Taken together, police investigations, patterns of the offences and intelligence findings establish ⁠Russian responsibility for the attempted attack at Leipzig ​Airport," he ‌said.

Standing alongside Dobrindt, Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul said ⁠Germany did ​not view Leipzig as an isolated incident.

"It fits into a broader pattern of Russian hybrid operations in Europe," he said.

In ⁠response to the attack, Wadephul said ​Germany would take a series of measures, including closing Russia's consulate general in Bonn and terminating its agreement with ⁠the Russian House cultural centre in Berlin.

Germany will also push within the European Union for additional sanctions listings and travel restrictions on Russian nationals, while increasing pressure ​on Russia's "shadow fleet", he said.

Responding to ⁠Germany's announcement, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said ​Moscow would respond to what she ‌called Berlin's "anti-Russian action", according to ​Interfax news agency. She did not elaborate.

(Reporting by Maria Martinez and James MackenzieEditing by Gareth Jones)

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