Kremlin rejects German intelligence chief’s ‘shadow war’ accusations

​The Kremlin dismissed ‌on Tuesday accusations ​by Germany's head of foreign intelligence that Russia was waging a "shadow war" ‌against European countries, describing them as baseless and a ploy to justify defence spending.

On Monday, intelligence chief Martin Jaeger said Germany ‌was facing a confrontation with Russia that had taken on ‌a "new, more dangerous dimension". The threat of Russian attacks against targets in Germany remained real and imminent, he added. Asked to comment, Kremlin spokesman ⁠Dmitry ​Peskov told reporters: "These ⁠accusations are absolutely groundless and have no real factual basis whatsoever."

He said ⁠Germany was "creating an illusory enemy in order to justify spending on ​militarisation." German authorities have warned repeatedly that Russia is conducting a ⁠hybrid campaign of drone and cyber attacks, and have blamed it ⁠for ​an attempted drone attack on Leipzig airport in August.

In July, Chancellor Friedrich Merz said Germany planned to double its ⁠defence budget within four years and reach NATO’s target of spending ⁠3.5% ⁠of economic output on core defence requirements by 2029, ahead of the agreed deadline.