We are seeing the first reports of German chancellor Friedrich Merz’s statement this morning ahead of a cabinet meeting in Brandenburg.
He has spoken out for the first time about the attempted drone attack on Leipzig airport earlier this month. As my colleagues Deborah Cole and Andrew Roth reported at the time, a small drone carrying explosives was found at Leipzig/Halle airport, a major cargo and military logistics hub that handles aid shipments to Ukraine. The incident triggered an alarm and forced several flights to be diverted. German police deployed a bomb disposal robot to defuse and destroy the explosive device, which was found in the vicinity of several Ukrainian cargo planes.
Merz said Germany has “increasingly come into the crosshairs of hybrid attackers” and that perpetrators must face consequences. “They will pay for it,” Merz said, according to the German newspaper Die Welt.
Merz said his government was “working closely with the security authorities” on the matter, and that it will present its findings “shortly”.
Local media, citing security sources, have reported potential Russian involvement in the attempted attack, but Merz did not comment on the possible perpetrators.
