German police said on Friday, June 27th, that they had opened a sabotage inquiry after several army trucks were torched, with footage on Russian social media claiming the blaze was started by “our people.”
The interior ministry in the eastern state of Thuringia said police were investigating the fires at a depot in the city of Erfurt last weekend.
“We cannot say with certainty who was behind this attack,” said regional Interior Minister Georg Maier, but “if it should be confirmed that a foreign power—Russia, for example—has carried out a targeted act of sabotage, then this is once again an attack on our democracy.”
Germany has uncovered numerous cases of suspected espionage and sabotage in the country since Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
Europe’s top economy has been the second-biggest supplier of aid to Ukraine since the invasion began.
Images purporting to show the burning trucks were uploaded on Thursday to a Russian Telegram channel, with a caption saying that “our people” had set them on fire.
The Russian Telegram channel also claimed the trucks were being repaired for the Ukrainian armed forces.
A year ago several military vehicles were set on fire at the same site in Erfurt, and two weeks ago six such vehicles were burned in the western town of Soltau.
