Mutiny in Russia
BND is said to have intercepted the phone call between Prigozhin and Lukashenko
Wagner fighters in the captured city of Rostov-on-Don, Russia. The BND is said to have had indications of an imminent uprising in advance.
© Erik Romanenko/TASS PUBLICATION / Imago Images
When Yevgeny Prigozhin went into open mutiny with his Wagner fighters in Russia on June 24, the BND is said to have been in no way surprised. The German foreign intelligence service is said to have intercepted the troops’ internal communications for some time – including the phone call between Prigozhin and Lukashenko.
When Yevgeny Prigozhin marched to Moscow on June 24 to claim the removal of Defense Minister Shoigu and Chief of Staff Gerasimov, the Belarusian dictator said it was his fault Alexander Lukashenko, who mediated between the mutinous leader of the Wagner troupe and Vladimir Putin. In a phone call, Lukashenko claims to have persuaded Prigozhin to lay down his arms and turn around.
After Research by WDR and NDR the German foreign secret service BND is said to have monitored the communication between Prigozhin and Lukashenko and also wiretapped this phone call.
A spokesman for the BND did not want to comment on the report when asked by WDR and NDR. The intelligence service “generally does not comment publicly on matters relating to any intelligence findings or activities,” the spokesman said. This makes no statement as to whether the facts of the case are correct or not. “The Federal Intelligence Service reports on relevant topics, particularly those of the Federal Government and the competent, secretly meeting bodies of the German Bundestag.”
When did the BND know about the upcoming uprising in Russia?
After the Prigozhin uprising, German politicians criticized the German secret service because, according to official information, the BND had only informed the federal government about the events in Russia on June 24 – when the Wagner fighters had already marched to Moscow. Chancellor Olaf Scholz said after the mutiny that the German secret services were not as well informed about the impending Prigozhin uprising as the US secret services.
According to the findings of WDR and NDR, the BND was said to have had a vague indication of a possibly imminent uprising by the Wagner group against the Kremlin about a week earlier. The BND would have tried to verify this information in exchange with its partners. However, this was initially unsuccessful. Therefore, the Chancellery was not informed about this.
A first warning from the BND about the impending events is said to have been sent to the federal government on the evening before the Prigozhin uprising.
Internal communication hacked by Wagner
The BND is said to have had insights into the internals of the Wagner Group since last year. According to information from WDR and NDR, the foreign secret service had apparently hacked into the troops’ internal communications and diligently read along. But then the BND employee Carsten L. is said to have betrayed the wiretapping operation to the Russian secret service. In the so-called “mole case” he soon faces charges of treason.