Kremlin warned Germany after Leipzig airport sabotage that it would not be the last attack, reports WSJ — Meduza

After German authorities discovered an attempted act of sabotage at Leipzig airport, a Kremlin official contacted his German government counterpart and warned that the Leipzig attack would not be Moscow’s last target, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing sources. The newspaper did not disclose the name of the Russian official.

In August 2026, a drone loaded with explosives was found at Leipzig Airport near a Ukrainian An-124 transport plane. It was later discovered that several drones, not just one, were involved. On September 1, Germany officially accused Russia of trying to sabotage the airport. Moscow denies these accusations.

European officials, citing U.S. intelligence, told the newspaper that frustration had grown in Moscow over the summer as neither fighting on the front lines nor negotiations with Washington had persuaded Ukraine to agree to Vladimir Putin’s demands.

The Russian president personally ordered an intensification of the campaign of sabotage and covert operations against NATO countries, sources familiar with the findings of US intelligence told the WSJ. After a trip to Moscow, CIA Director John Ratcliffe personally told his European intelligence counterparts, as well as several politicians, that Moscow was intensifying sabotage operations against their countries.

The WSJ said incidents of sabotage have increased sharply across Europe since the attempted attack on Leipzig. In August, arson attacks targeted drone manufacturing factories in Estonia and Poland. The same month, Slovak authorities said they had foiled a planned arson attack on a factory producing Ukrainian drones in Slovakia. In recent weeks, Poland, Lithuania and Bulgaria have each reported sabotage targeting Starlink ground stations.