After the fire at a Starlink station in Poland and the arrest of two suspects in Germany yesterday, Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul called for even closer European cooperation against hybrid attacks.
"We are in Russia's crosshairs," the CDU politician told journalists on the sidelines of a security forum in the Polish capital Warsaw. "We are under attack and it's not just happening in Ukraine, but everywhere in Europe," warned Wadephul. "That means we have to strengthen our cooperation." He had previously consulted with his Polish colleague Radoslaw Sikorski.
At the same time, the arrests in Germany show that cooperation on security is working, Wadephul continued. There is intact, trusting cooperation in the alliance between all security authorities, not only military, but also in the intelligence services.
Searches and arrests in Baden-Württemberg
“Russia will not succeed in dividing our societies,” Wadephul said. However, national thought must also be given to what more can be done. In Germany, the Federal Intelligence Service, as the German foreign secret service, is in the process of being able to take measures that could put a stop to such perpetrators sooner, said Wadephul. In addition, civil defense must be put on a new footing - "this is due to the new security situation".
According to Polish government information, two suspected saboteurs who are said to have carried out an arson attack on a Starlink station in Poland were caught in Germany. Baden-Württemberg's Interior Minister Manuel Hagel confirmed that two European arrest warrants had been sent to the Federal Criminal Police Office for execution in Germany. On Monday, two men were arrested by special forces in Nürtingen. In addition, three apartments were searched, two of them in Baden-Württemberg.
Hagel calls for “real defense services”
A witness was found to be at large again. The Interior Minister said he could not provide any further information about the specific case, such as connections to Russia or organized crime. The investigation is in a very early phase. In addition, important information is subject to confidentiality.
However, Hagel warned of the specific threat situation. You upgrade the security architecture and have to wake up from your “sleeping beauty sleep”. The state offices for the protection of the constitution must now be turned into “real defense services”.
Reports of further arrests
Poland's police chief Marek Boron said that after the arson attack, investigators were able to reconstruct the preparations for the crime and how the perpetrators fled the scene. “We have fingerprints, DNA traces of the perpetrators, as well as information about how they moved, when they entered Poland and when they were flown out of our country,” said Boron. According to him, one of the suspects has Turkish citizenship and is based in Germany. The other person arrested also has Turkish citizenship and there is a deportation order for him in Germany. However, it is hoped that both would be transferred quickly to the Polish authorities.
Polish and German media reported two further arrests. According to Bild, the police in Berlin-Spandau are said to have caught another suspect, possibly the driver of the other two men. The Schwäbische Zeitung reports on the arrest of a woman in Karlsruhe. She is said to have ties to organized crime. However, the authorities have not yet commented on these two alleged arrests.
Affected station also important for Ukraine
On September 23rd there was a fire in a terminal of the Starlink satellite internet service 50 kilometers south of Warsaw. Shortly afterwards, the Polish government spoke of a likely act of sabotage against the station, which also ensures the security of Internet operations in Ukraine. Warsaw sees the Russian secret services behind the arson attack.
Because of the increasing threat of espionage and sabotage from Russia, Green Party domestic politician Konstantin von Notz called in the "Schwäbische Zeitung" for closer cooperation between European intelligence services. Recruited "disposable agents" play a crucial role in attacks by authoritarian states on security, prosperity and freedom, said von Notz. Organized crime structures are also repeatedly used.
