Merz says Germany will soon announce response to attempted Leipzig drone attack

Germany will soon announce its response to an attempted drone attack at Leipzig Airport, Chancellor Friedrich Merz said on Sunday, as tensions between Berlin and Moscow continue to rise.

“We are in the process of concluding the investigation,” Merz told public broadcaster ARD. “We have reached a broad consensus within the federal government on how to respond, and we will make that clear in the coming days. It won’t be long now.”

Asked whether any new sanctions on Russia would be a limited German step, Merz said Berlin was not acting alone.

“It has already been coordinated. It will be finalized in the coming days with the European Union and our NATO partners,” he said, without giving details. “It will be a response from Germany, but our partners in the European Union and NATO will not be surprised by it.”

His comments followed German media reports that Berlin is preparing to hold Russia responsible for the early August incident at Leipzig Airport and announce tougher measures next week.

The weekly Welt am Sonntag, citing officials familiar with the plans, reported on Saturday that the measures would target Russian entities directly and would be coordinated with a new EU sanctions package being prepared in Brussels. An announcement could come in the coming days, possibly around an EU foreign ministers’ meeting in Ireland on Tuesday.

It was not clear whether Berlin would attribute the attack to individual Russian operatives or to the Russian government. A German government spokesperson declined to provide details, saying any official attribution would follow a review of the investigative findings.

According to the report, the options under consideration go beyond earlier steps such as expelling Russian diplomats or closing the Russian House cultural center in Berlin. Officials did not specify the tougher measures but said they could include intensified sanctions or expanded arms deliveries to Ukraine.

Airport attack more serious than initially described

German media reported last week that the attempted drone attack on a Ukrainian Antonov cargo plane at Leipzig Airport earlier this month was more serious than initially described.

The drone had been rigged with explosives, and investigators now believe several drones were involved rather than one, according to public broadcasters NDR and WDR.

Welt am Sonntag also reported that the discovery of a weapons cache near Berlin has hardened the government’s stance.

German domestic intelligence officers found weapons and ammunition in a professionally prepared underground depot in a forest near the capital, authorities confirmed this month.

Federal prosecutors are investigating suspected preparation of a serious violent act threatening the state.

The BfV assessed that the weapons were stashed for Russian spies who could be ordered by Moscow to carry out assassination operations, according to the reports.

The Russian Embassy in Berlin has not issued an official statement on the allegations.

Moscow has previously rejected claims of assassinations, sabotage and spying in countries allied with Ukraine, accusing Western governments of stoking “anti-Russian paranoia.”