Russia Again Denies Involvement in Drone Sabotage Attempt at Leipzig Airport

Russia's ambassador to Germany, Sergei Nechayev, has once again dismissed accusations that Moscow was behind an attempted drone attack at Leipzig/Halle Airport in eastern Germany. According to him, if Russia had actually intended to carry out an operation in Leipzig, things would have looked very different — the ambassador made the remark on the podcast "ungeskriptet."

"We have not the slightest intention of provoking local residents or the authorities," the diplomat added.

What happened at the airport

In early August, Germany recorded an attempted attack on Leipzig/Halle Airport: a drone was carrying explosives, but the detonator failed to go off. According to available information, the target of the attack was aircraft belonging to the Ukrainian company Antonov. On Tuesday, the German government placed the blame for the incident on Russia, with German investigators saying they had already identified two specific perpetrators. Moscow has denied the accusations.

Berlin and Moscow's countermeasures

In response to the incident, Germany closed Russia's consulate general in Bonn and terminated its agreement with the "Russian House" cultural center in Berlin — an institution that critics say had long served intelligence purposes rather than the arts. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov announced that Moscow intends to respond by closing Goethe-Institutes operating on Russian territory.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said on Saturday that the attack on the airport near Leipzig shows that the country stands on the brink of a fundamental shift with far-reaching consequences, the full significance of which will only become clear over time. He also warned Moscow against continuing this kind of hybrid warfare.

Around Prague, based on reporting by novinky.cz