Trial for 'Treason' Begins in Germany; Concerns Rise Over Russian Espionage Threat

A court in Germany has accused a former soldier who worked for the country's foreign intelligence service of receiving at least 450,000 euros from Russia. The court announced on Wednesday, December 13, that Karsten Linke received this amount in exchange for information regarding the weapons that the West is providing to Ukraine. Karsten Linke and his partner, a Russian-German diamond trader named Arthur Ehler, have been charged with 'treason.' According to Reuters, the German intelligence agency was caught off guard by Russia's attack on Ukraine, to the extent that Bruno Kahl, the head of the agency, was in Kyiv on the morning of the invasion. The prosecutor stated that about two months later, one of the intelligence officials under Kahl was plotting to sell secrets to the Russian intelligence service. The lead prosecutor said that Linke had agreed to help a wealthy Russian trader, who is acquainted with Ehler, obtain residency in Germany while also agreeing to provide information to the Russian intelligence service. Prosecutors stated that Ehler had taken photos of classified documents printed by Linke with his phone and delivered them to the Russian intelligence service offices during a trip to Moscow. According to this report, the Russian intelligence service eventually provided them with three specialized spying phones. Prosecutors said that Ehler also received hundreds of thousands of euros in cash to cover his and Linke's service fees. The magazine 'Der Spiegel' previously reported that Moscow had learned through leaked information that the German foreign intelligence service had gained access to the chat system used by the Wagner Group, which played a significant role in the war against Ukraine at that time. This trial is expected to continue until summer. The crime of 'treason' in Germany carries a life sentence.