Nfter the arrest of an employee of the Federal Intelligence Service on suspicion of treason, Justice Minister Marco Buschmann emphasized the importance of the case. “If the suspicion is confirmed, an important blow against Russian espionage has been struck here,” wrote the FDP politician on Twitter on Thursday evening. “It shows how vigilant we have to be.”
The accused is said to have transmitted information that he obtained in the course of his work to a Russian intelligence service this year. The Federal Public Prosecutor’s Office in Karlsruhe announced on Thursday that the content was a state secret within the meaning of the Criminal Code. The German was arrested in Berlin on Wednesday and is now in custody.
“Restraint and discretion are very important in this particular case”
According to the Criminal Code, state secrets are “facts, objects or knowledge that are only accessible to a limited group of people and must be kept secret from a foreign power in order to avert the risk of serious damage to the external security of the Federal Republic of Germany”.
Out of consideration for the ongoing investigations, the BND will not publicly comment on the details of the case until further notice, stressed BND President Bruno Kahl on Thursday in Berlin. “Restraint and discretion are very important in this particular case.” With Russia, on the other hand, we are dealing with an actor “whose unscrupulousness and willingness to use violence we have to reckon with,” added the president of the German foreign intelligence service.
The reason for these statements could be the concern about possible dangers for contacts and informers of the German secret service in Russia, who could have been betrayed by the suspected spy in the ranks of the BND.
Kahl emphasized that every detail of the process that was made public “means an advantage for this opponent in order to harm Germany”. Therefore, in this case, the success of the investigation depends on “that as little as possible becomes public until the Attorney General has completed his investigation”.
According to the Criminal Code, treason can be punished with a prison sentence of at least five years or life imprisonment in particularly serious cases like this one. Such a case exists, for example, if the perpetrator has abused a responsible position that places him under a special obligation to protect state secrets.
After the BND became aware of a possible suspected case within its own ranks as part of its intelligence work, the service immediately initiated extensive internal investigations, said BND President Kahl. When they confirmed the suspicion, the Federal Public Prosecutor was called on immediately. “We work closely and trustingly with the investigative authorities to thoroughly clarify the case.”
