Germany accuses Russia of 2024 cyber attack and election disinformation campaign

The Russian ambassador is summoned over a cyber-attack on air traffic control and attempted electoral interference.

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A foreign ministry spokesman said Russian military intelligence was behind a "cyber-attack against German air traffic control in August 2024". The spokesman also accused Russia of seeking to influence and destabilise the country's federal election in February this year.

The latest accusations come amid heightened concern in Europe over suspected Russian cyber-attacks since Moscow launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

Russia has "categorically rejected" the claims, saying their alleged involvement in such incidents was "absurd".

"The accusations of Russian state structures' involvement in these incidents and in the activities of hacker groups in general are baseless, unfounded and absurd," Russia's embassy in Berlin said in a statement to AFP news agency.