A spokesman for the German Interior Ministry said on Sunday that Berlin is planning to take a wide package of measures. To strengthen its defenses against “drone attacks, hacking, and other forms of Russian sabotage,” following a failed drone attack on an airport last month.
Bild am Sonntag newspaper quoted Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt as saying that Russian multi-media attacks have become part of the daily reality, adding, “These attacks will increase, but we are able to defend and protect ourselves.”
Russia has always rejected accusations that it is carrying out operations in Western Europe, and denied its involvement in the attack on the German airport, saying that it would respond to what its Foreign Ministry spokeswoman described as “anti-Russian action.” The Russian TASS news agency quoted Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov as saying that these accusations represent “the beginning of a real war.”
According to the newspaper’s report, quoting the German Ministry of the Interior, “the capabilities of the mobile police to confront drones will be expanded within the framework of the plan, with quick-deployed units stationed to confront the drones in cities to protect the airspace above vital transportation centers and government areas.” The report added that companies that manage critical infrastructure, such as electricity utilities and defense equipment manufacturers, will be given the legal authority not only to monitor drones, but also to effectively confront them.
A national protective shield, or what is known as a “Cyber Dome,” will be established, including a network of digital sensors designed to detect and intercept attempted cyberattacks. The government also intends to expand the use of AI-powered technologies, biometric facial recognition, and video surveillance, for example at railway stations, to identify attackers suspected of planning to commit acts of sabotage.
The tension in Türkiye's relations with the European Union and its institutions has witnessed a new chapter centered on the continued Turkish military presence in northern Cyprus since 1974.
In the latest chapter of tension, the Committee on Women’s Rights and Gender Equality in the European Parliament presented a proposal to allocate funding within the European Union budget for the year 2027 to build a memorial in Nicosia in memory of “Greek Cypriot” women who were allegedly subjected to physical violence by Turkish soldiers during the intervention in northern Cyprus in 1974.
Türkiye called on the institutions of the “European Union” not to be led by allegations promoted by Cyprus, which are considered a distortion and politicization of historical facts, put forward by the “Roman side” (the Republic of Cyprus).
The Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs said, in a statement, that “Turkish forces prevented the extermination of the Turkish Cypriots,” through what it called “the peace process (military intervention in northern Cyprus in 1974),” and “established peace on the entire island that has been continuing for more than half a century.” She considered that the “European Union” institutions being led by “the propaganda of the Greek side in Cyprus, and their deviation from neutrality and justice, instead of contributing to resolving the Cyprus issue, would deepen the lack of trust between the Turkish and Greek communities” on the divided island.
This came after the European Parliament approved, on July 8, the decision to consider Turkey’s intervention in northern Cyprus in 1974 an “invasion,” accusing its army of “committing atrocities against the Greek Cypriots.” In mid-July, the European Union issued a “Document of Joint Understanding” that opened a new chapter of tension with Türkiye for ignoring its status as a candidate country for accession.
On the sidelines of the NATO summit in Ankara, Erdogan met with the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, and the President of the European Council, Antonio Costa, to discuss relations between Turkey and Europe. In a joint statement, the two sides stressed the strategic importance of Turkish-European relations to achieve regional and economic stability, and stressed “the necessity of working together in confronting geopolitical challenges, and the importance of cooperation in the fields of trade, energy, transportation, and digitalization in the context of the regional connectivity agenda,” but the European delegation refrained from indicating the possibility of resuming Türkiye’s accession negotiations.
