Germany is planning to strengthen its foreign intelligence service, giving it new powers to prepare for a situation when the United States stops providing intelligence information, writes Politico.
The plan comes at a time when leaders in Germany and other European countries are increasingly concerned that US President Donald Trump could decide to stop sharing intelligence information or start using Europeans’ dependence on American information as leverage to achieve decisions in his favor. Officials in Berlin have indicated that just as military capabilities are being strengthened, German intelligence capabilities must also grow significantly.
Marc Henrichmann, chairman of the special committee of the German parliament that oversees the country’s intelligence services, told Politico that the Germans want to continue close cooperation with the Americans. However, if the current or any future US president decides to do without the Europeans, they must be able to stand on their own two feet. The Germans believe that in their case, changes are especially urgent, because the legislation on the country’s foreign intelligence service (BND) is much more restrictive than in other countries. The restrictions were a conscious decision after World War II to prevent the service from being used for wrong purposes again, as the Nazi spy agencies did.
True, the restrictions have their drawbacks – Germany is particularly dependent on US intelligence information, which now creates a dangerous situation. Henrichmann said that in intelligence there is always a question – what can the parties offer each other.
If Germany only receives but does not give anything in return, the risk is too great.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz wants to strengthen the BND and free it from restrictions, giving it much broader powers to carry out sabotage, carry out cyberattacks and conduct espionage more aggressively. Thorsten Frei, the chancellor’s intelligence reform chief, likened the plan to a historic turning point mentioned by former German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, who announced a major investment in Germany’s long-neglected armed forces after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Frei said similar changes are needed for the intelligence services.
The German BND was founded in 1956, and the law imposed various restrictions on the service to prevent a repetition of the abuses committed by the Nazi Gestapo and SS units. At the same time, many of the agents of the newly founded BND had also worked in Nazi organizations. In order to strictly separate the BND from the police and prevent the service from interfering in internal affairs, it was subordinated to the Chancellor’s office and linked to strict parliamentary control mechanisms. The BND’s powers were limited to the collection and analysis of intelligence information, and agents had no authority to intervene to prevent threats.
The restrictions have remained to this day. For example, German spies may learn of a planned cyberattack, but they can do practically nothing to prevent it themselves. Similarly, within the framework of the law, agents can listen in on conversations, but they are not allowed to sabotage to prevent a detected threat. Germany’s strict data protection laws (largely a response to the legacy of the East German secret police) further restrict the BND’s work. For example, the service must redact individuals’ data before it passes it on to other intelligence services.
German officials say such restrictions are no longer justified, especially in light of the growing threat from Russia.
Frey said that when Germany is attacked, it must be able to do more than just watch – it must be able to defend itself. He added that all countries with such services do this.
The weakness of Germany’s intelligence services means that the country has relied heavily on US activities to stop attacks. For example, the Americans were the ones who informed them of Russian plans to assassinate the CEO of Rheinmetall and of a Chechen attack on the Israeli embassy in Berlin. The German newspaper Bild, citing a secret intelligence document, reported that only about 2% of warnings about terrorist threats come from the BND.
Berlin officials were deeply concerned last March by Washington’s decision to temporarily suspend the transfer of intelligence information to Ukraine. The US made the decision to put pressure on Kiev, and it effectively blindsided the Ukrainian army in the very epicenter of the war. It also became clear that the US administration was ready to use its dominance in the intelligence field to influence allies. A few months later, Merz promised to significantly strengthen the BND’s capabilities. His
government has increased the BND’s budget by about 26% this year,
to 1.51 billion euros. The chancellor also plans to ease the data protection rules to which the service is subject, allowing the use of artificial intelligence and facial recognition programs. Merz’s office hopes to pass the entire reform package for a parliamentary vote by the fall.
Despite the reforms, the BND is expected to remain under strict restrictions. However, many members of Germany’s coalition believe the changes will already allow the country to better protect itself. Henrichmann said those working against Germany were working in the same way as the Nazi intelligence services, and in a game without rules, Germans could not afford to subject themselves to artificial restrictions of their own making.
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