Berlin, Germany. The German government has announced that it “won’t be intimidated” by Russian attempts to undermine its support for Ukraine. However, officials declined to comment on a report alleging that Moscow planned to assassinate the CEO of a leading defense company.

According to a CNN report on Thursday, citing five unidentified U.S. and Western officials, U.S. intelligence discovered earlier this year that Russia intended to kill Rheinmetall CEO Armin Papperger. The report stated that the United States informed Germany, whose security services successfully protected Papperger and thwarted the plot. Rheinmetall is a major supplier of military technology and artillery rounds to Ukraine.

Both Rheinmetall and the German government have refrained from commenting on the report. Interior Ministry spokesperson Maximilian Kall stated that his ministry cannot comment on “individual threat situations” but emphasized that “we take the significantly increased threat from Russian aggression very seriously.”

“We know that [Russian President Vladimir] Putin’s regime aims primarily to undermine our support for Ukraine in its defense against the Russian war of aggression, but the German government won’t be intimidated,” Kall stated.

He highlighted that German security measures have been significantly strengthened since 2022, adding that “the threats range from espionage and sabotage to cyberattacks and state terrorism.”

In April, German investigators arrested two German-Russian men on suspicion of espionage, with one of them accused of planning attacks on potential targets, including U.S. military facilities, in an effort to sabotage aid for Ukraine.

Germany has become the second-largest supplier of weapons to Ukraine after the United States since Russia began its full-scale invasion of Ukraine more than two years ago.

CNN reported that the alleged plot against Papperger was part of a series of Russian plans to assassinate European defense industry executives supporting the Ukrainian war effort.

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov dismissed the report, stating, “All of this is again presented in the fake style, so such reports cannot be taken seriously,” he told reporters on Friday.

#GermanyStrong, #RussianThreat, #UkraineSupport

Tags: Germany, Russia, Assassination Plot, Ukraine, Rheinmetall