In an investigative report published on Tuesday, Reuters analysed how pro-Russian elements in Germany are trying to turn public support against Ukraine.
FINDINGS
In September, about 2,000 protestors gathered in Cologne with German and Russian flags, calling on the Scholz administration to break the Western coalition and stop supporting Ukraine against Russia. “We must stop being vassals of the Americans,” asserted right-wing German politician Markus Beisicht.
These include organizers of several pro-Russia protests in Cologne who traveled together to Donbas last year to distribute aid. In a video of their trip, Elena Kolbasnikova and Max Schlund thanked the People's Front, a group headed by Vladimir Putin, for help organizing the trip.
— Mari Saito (@saitomri) January 3, 2023
The protest is one of the many incidents, both online and offline, where people have demanded Germany to reconsider its support for Ukraine, owing to its long-standing relationship with Russia, millions of Russian speakers living in the country, a legacy of Soviet ties to Communist East Germany, and Germany’s decades-old dependency on Russian gas.
In this respect, most Russians, who migrated to Germany between 1992 and 2002, vote for the far-right Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) party more than any other demographic.
Additionally, the report found at least 27 German-language Telegram accounts that consistently reshare and promote pro-Kremlin messages to about 1.5 million subscribers.
KEY PLAYERS
Oleg Eremenko – A former Russian military intelligence officer now running a Berlin construction company with clients including the Russian Orthodox Church in Berlin. He is also an associate of Igor Girkin, who was convicted last month for shooting down flight MH17 in 2014.
Max Schlund/Rostislav Teslyuk – A former Russian Air Force officer, who organises pro-Russian rallies in Germany.
Some of the other figures involved in work to push a pro-Kremlin message in #Germany include Seewald who’s behind a Telegram account that shares memes and German translations of Putin's speeches. He's been cited by Bavaria's verfassungsschutz as an extremist.#StandWithUkraine pic.twitter.com/XZD0l5HnxD
— Dena Grayson, MD, PhD (@DrDenaGrayson) January 3, 2023
Wjatscheslaw Seewald – Runs a popular social media handle called Putin Fanclub on Telegram. He is also under scrutiny after Bavaria’s Office for the Protection of the Constitution, which monitors extremists, said in 2021 that Seewald publicly backs anti-Semitic conspiracy theories and influences extremists who threaten democracy.
Jan Riedel – President of German-Russian Souls, a group that raises funds for Donbas. He also supports the Night Wolves, a Russian biker club that is under Western sanctions for assisting the Russian forces in seizing Crimea in 2014 and recruiting separatist fighters in Donbas.
Andrei Kharkovsky – Participant in Russian Cossack gatherings, serving as a steward at pro-Russia demonstrations in Germany.
Elena Kolbasnikova – A Ukrainian organising and leading pro-Russia protests with Schlund.
GERMAN GOVERNMENT’S RESPONSE
The German Ministry of the Interior said that it takes “very seriously” any efforts by foreign countries or individuals to apply influence, especially “in the context of the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine.”
Fascinating read — pro-Putin stooges working in Germany to convince Germans to back Russia and turn against Ukraine. It’s being allowed to happen, and is it working? https://t.co/gANlnRzFJt
— Luke Baker (@BakerLuke) January 3, 2023
Germany has provided over $1 billion in humanitarian and military support to Ukraine and its neighbouring countries, including advanced air defence systems. According to recent polls, the majority of Germans still support Ukraine, but are unwilling to increase military assistance to Kyiv.