Russia or its proxies have been flying surveillance drones over the road and rail corridors in eastern Germany that the United States and its allies use to move weapons toward Ukraine, the New York Times reported on 28 August, citing U.S. and other Western officials. Some of the devices are believed to be Iranian-made and may be launched from ships in the Baltic Sea, the officials said. Intelligence services on both sides of the Atlantic fear the flights could enable Moscow to map NATO logistics and prepare sabotage operations or otherwise bolster Russian forces on the battlefield. The concern follows the May arrest in Germany of three Ukrainian nationals accused of plotting attacks on behalf of Russia and a broader campaign that has included warehouse fires in Britain, an assault on a Norwegian dam and attempts to sever undersea cables in the Baltic. While Western security agencies say stepped-up counter-intelligence measures have reduced the number of successful sabotage incidents this year, they view the drone activity as a sign that Moscow is still probing Europe’s defenses. Berlin and Washington are discussing responses, according to the Times. The Kremlin rejected the allegations. Spokesman Dmitry Peskov dismissed the drone-overflight reports as "fake news," telling reporters that any such activity would have been noticed immediately by German authorities.
Peskov dismisses media reports alleging Russian reconnaissance drones flying over US weapons routes in Germany, calling them 'fake news' 'It's hard to imagine this, because then the Germans would see it clearly and they would hardly stay silent' — said Kremlin spox https://t.co/pON4Mu6FE4
ロシア、ドイツ上空での米軍輸送ルート監視報道を否定 https://t.co/hQDGQ6tFZw https://t.co/hQDGQ6tFZw
RUSSIA DEPLOYING SURVEILLANCE DRONES OVER EASTERN GERMANY TO TRACK US & ALLIED MILITARY SUPPLY ROUTES, RAISING FEARS OF SABOTAGE IN UKRAINE CONFLICT — NYT