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ENERGY

Germany takes temporary control of Gazprom subsidiary

Germany said Monday it was temporarily taking control of Russian gas giant Gazprom's German subsidiary to secure energy supply and critical infrastructure amid growing distrust between the trade partners in the wake of the Ukraine war.

Economy and Climate Minister Robert Habeck speaks at a press conference in Berlin on Monday.
Economy and Climate Minister Robert Habeck speaks at a press conference in Berlin on Monday. Photo: picture alliance/dpa | Michael Kappeler

Energy Minister Robert Habeck said the Bundesnetzagentur energy regulator would become the trustee of Gazprom Germania until September 30th.

“The government is doing what is necessary to ensure security of supplies in Germany, and that includes not exposing energy infrastructures in Germany to arbitrary decisions by the Kremlin,” Habeck said.

The move comes after state-owned Gazprom unexpectedly said it was withdrawing from Gazprom Germania last Friday, without disclosing a new ownership structure.

The German unit holds several key energy assets, including natural gas supplier Wingas, which has a market share of around 20 percent in Germany, gas storage firm Astora, a London-based trading arm and other foreign subsidiaries.

The German government made the decision to step in because of the current “unclear” legal structure behind Gazprom Germania and the mother firm’s failure to comply with the obligation to inform German authorities of ownership changes, the minister said.

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Under German law, the government has the right to examine transactions involving non-EU firms deemed systemically relevant.

Habeck said Gazprom Germania operates “critical infrastructure” in Europe’s biggest economy.

Under the interim arrangement, voting rights in Gazprom Germania will be transferred to the Bundesnetzagentur.

The energy regulator will also be allowed to dismiss management members and appoint new ones, as well as “take all necessary measures to guarantee supplies”, Habeck said.

Germany has backed sweeping Western sanctions against Moscow over its invasion of Ukraine.

But because of its heavy reliance on Russian energy imports, Berlin has so far resisted pressure to boycott Russian oil and gas.

Those calls have grown louder at home and abroad however following recent allegations of atrocities committed against civilians in the Ukrainian town of Bucha.

EU antitrust investigators last week raided the German offices of Gazprom, on suspicion the Russian state gas giant had illegally pushed up prices in Europe.

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GERMANY AND RUSSIA

Germany, Czech Republic accuse Russia of cyberattacks

Germany and the Czech Republic on Friday blamed Russia for a series of recent cyberattacks, prompting the European Union to warn Moscow of consequences over its "malicious behaviour in cyberspace".

Germany, Czech Republic accuse Russia of cyberattacks

The accusations come at a time of strained relations between Moscow and the West following Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine and the European Union’s support for Kyiv.

German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said a newly concluded government investigation found that a cyberattack targeting members of the Social Democratic Party had been carried out by a group known as APT28.

APT28 “is steered by the military intelligence service of Russia”, Baerbock told reporters during a visit to Australia.

“In other words, it was a state-sponsored Russian cyberattack on Germany and this is absolutely intolerable and unacceptable and will have consequences.”

APT28, also known as Fancy Bear, has been accused of dozens of cyberattacks in countries around the world. Russia denies being behind such actions.

The hacking attack on German Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s SPD party was made public last year. Hackers exploited a previously unknown vulnerability in Microsoft Outlook to compromise e-mail accounts, according to Berlin.

Berlin on Friday summoned the acting charge d’affaires of the Russian embassy over the incident.

The Russian embassy in Germany said its envoy “categorically rejected the accusations that Russian state structures were involved in the given incident… as unsubstantiated and groundless”.

Arms, aerospace targeted: BerlinĀ 

German Interior Minister Nancy Faeser said the cyber campaign was orchestrated by Russia’s military intelligence service GRU and began in 2022. It also targeted German companies in the armaments and aerospace sectors, she said.

Such cyberattacks are “a threat to our democracy, national security and our free societies”, she told a joint news conference in Prague with her Czech counterpart Vit Rakusan.

“We are calling on Russia again to stop these activities,” Faeser added.

Czech government officials said some of its state institutions had also been the target of cyberattacks blamed on APT28, again by exploiting a weakness in Microsoft Outlook in 2023.

Czech Interior Minister Rakusan said his country’s infrastructure had recently experienced “higher dozens” of such attacks.

“The Czech Republic is a target. In the long term, it has been perceived by the Russian Federation as an enemy state,” he told reporters.

EU, NATO condemnation

The German and Czech findings triggered strong condemnation from the European Union.

“The malicious cyber campaign shows Russia’s continuous pattern of irresponsible behaviour in cyberspace, by targeting democratic institutions, government entities and critical infrastructure providers across the European Union and beyond,” EU foreign affairs chief Josep Borrell said.

The EU would “make use of the full spectrum of measures to prevent, deter and respond to Russia’s malicious behaviour in cyberspace”, he added.

State institutions, agencies and entities in other member states including in Poland, Lithuania, Slovakia and Sweden had been targeted by APT28 in the past, the statement added.

The latest accusations come a day after NATO expressed “deep concern” over Russia’s “hybrid actions” including disinformation, sabotage and cyber interference.

The row also comes as millions of Europeans prepare to go to the polls for the European Parliament elections in June, and concerns about foreign meddling are running high.

Czech Foreign Minister Jan Lipavsky told AFP that “pointing a finger publicly at a specific attacker is an important tool to protect national interests”.

One of the most high-profile incidents so far blamed on Fancy Bear was a cyberattack in 2015 that paralysed the computer network of the German lower house of parliament, the Bundestag. It forced the entire institution offline for days while it was fixed.

In 2020, the EU imposed sanctions on individuals and entities linked to the APT28 group over the incident.

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