Is the general public still very naive? - Espionage in Germany and Europe

We are delighted to invite you to the discussion „Is the general public still very naive? – Espionage in Germany and Europe“ with Konstantin von Notz. The event will take place on 6 June 2024 at 17:30 at the Schwarzkopf Foundation Young Europe, Sophienstraße 28/29, 10178 Berlin.

Cases of espionage have increasingly come to public attention in recent years. Just think of former Wirecard board member Jan Marsalek, who was apparently a Russian agent, or the Tiergarten murder in August 2019, in which asylum seeker Selimchan Changoschwili was shot dead, presumably on behalf of the Russian secret service FSB. Most recently, in April of this year, it became public that two German-Russians were arrested for allegedly attempting to sabotage German support for Ukraine on behalf of Russia. Even though these cases make it clear that espionage in Germany is on the rise, the Parliamentary Control Committee of the German Bundestag warned in a rare statement that Russia, among others, was conducting massive espionage in Germany and that neither the government nor the population had recognised the full implications.

We are therefore all the more pleased to welcome Konstantin von Notz, Member of the German Bundestag (Bündnis 90/Die Grünen) and Chairman of the Parliamentary Control Committee for the Control of Federal Intelligence Services, to the Schwarzkopf Foundation Young Europe on Thursday 6 June at 17:30.

Together with you and Konstantin von Notz, we want to discuss the following and other questions: What are the current challenges that Germany and Europe are currently facing in the area of espionage? What technologies and methods are used to obtain confidential information? How does political espionage influence democratic processes and decision-making? What specific threats does Russian and Chinese espionage pose to the German economy? What dangers does espionage harbour in connection with elections, especially the European elections? How well equipped are German security authorities against espionage? Are there ways in which civil society can help to strengthen counter-espionage in Germany and Europe?

We look forward to your participation. You can register online until 05.06.2024.