Dr. Frank Umbach notes an increasing intensity in acts of sabotage. The drone attack in Leipzig represents a new level of escalation. Protection of critical infrastructure remains inadequate, as demonstrated by the sabotage of two substations. He also emphasizes that similar attacks have struck the Baltic states and other European countries in recent months, but this has gone largely unnoticed in Germany because people have almost become accustomed to it.
Russian intelligence agencies usually do not carry out acts of sabotage themselves, but they provide planning, information, and support, Umbach says. Militant environmental activists may also act in Russia’s interests, whether knowingly or unknowingly. Attribution, however, proves difficult. Furthermore, various groups of perpetrators learn from one another—for example, from mistakes and the reactions of security agencies.
Attackers benefit greatly from technological advances, such as in drone technology, as well as from freely accessible information online, such as satellite images, which facilitate attacks. According to Umbach, the situation is completely different from that during the Cold War, as there have not yet been comparable acts of sabotage within the context of hybrid warfare. His conclusion: We have “thrown the gates to our own infrastructure wide open,” since too much security-related information has been publicly accessible for years.