Alarm among German security authorities following the discovery of a weapons cache on the outskirts of Berlin, as evidence points to a connection with Russian intelligence services.
According to Tagesschau, which cites a joint investigation by WDR, NDR, and SZ, German authorities discovered a cache containing two firearms in a forested area on the border between Brandenburg and Berlin.
German security services are examining the possibility that the cache was established by Russian agents and was intended for preparing potential attacks in Germany.
Cache for weapons, documents, and equipment
The cache was discovered in late summer of last year in a forested area.
According to the investigation's information, it was professionally outfitted and could have served as a clandestine dead drop for handing over weapons, documents, or other equipment to operatives.
Among the findings was a revolver, which had been rendered inoperative, but remained in the cache.
The particularly crucial detail is that the German Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution (Bundesamt für Verfassungsschutz) possesses intelligence examining a potential link between the cache and Russian intelligence services.
«Kinetic operations» and attack plans
According to sources cited by German media, the weapons may have been destined for operatives tasked with undertaking so-called «kinetic operations» in Germany.
The term refers to physical action operations, such as sabotage, attacks, and other actions that can cause direct property damage or endanger human lives.
German intelligence services have been warning for several months that Russian secret services may be planning operations inside Germany.
At the center of attention, according to the same assessments, are defense company executives, as well as Russian dissidents living in exile in Germany.
Investigations into a Russian sabotage network in Europe
The case forms part of a broader European puzzle.
In recent years, intelligence services across European countries have investigated a series of sabotage incidents that they link to Russian intelligence services.
These include arson attacks and parcels containing incendiary devices in Germany, Poland, and the United Kingdom.
The concern of European authorities is that Russia may be utilizing a network of individuals who are not visibly connected to state mechanisms, but can be recruited to execute sabotage operations.
Suspect arrested in Romania
In connection with the weapons cache case, a suspect was arrested in Romania.
According to German security officials, the man may be the individual who established the cache.
Concurrently, since November, the German Federal Public Prosecutor's Office has been investigating the case. The suspect is reportedly being investigated for planning a serious crime threatening the German state.
The Office for the Protection of the Constitution, however, does not comment on specific intelligence information or secret service operations.
At the same time, it clarified that this position neither confirms nor denies the information regarding the cache.
New case involving a drone at Leipzig airport
The case comes during a period of heightened concern in Germany over potential Russian sabotage operations.
On August 4, 2026, a drone allegedly carrying explosives was spotted at Leipzig airport near a Ukrainian transport aircraft.
The German Ministry of the Interior described the incident as a probable element of a hybrid attack.
Die Zeit reported that a drone crashed into a Ukrainian Antonov An-124 at Leipzig airport, without, however, an explosion occurring.
Der Spiegel, for its part, reported that German security authorities harbor few doubts that Russia is behind the attack on the An-124.
The new case involving the weapons cache thus adds another piece to the puzzle of European investigations into the activity of Russian networks and the possibility of shifting the conflict onto an increasingly dangerous «shadow front» inside Europe itself.
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