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Merz Says Russia Developing Submarines to Sabotage Undersea Cables
(MENAFN) German Chancellor Friedrich Merz sounded the alarm Tuesday over what he described as an escalating security threat across northern Europe, revealing that Russia is developing a new submarine fleet specifically engineered to sabotage undersea cables, pipelines, and other critical infrastructure.
“I was in Finland yesterday, where we held an EU summit on security policy in the Arctic region with the Nordic states. What we were told there did nothing to alleviate my concerns,” Merz said.
“We are seeing a massive threat to our entire undersea infrastructure. Russia is currently building a new class of submarines designed to destroy undersea cables, pipelines, and infrastructure,” he added.
The chancellor delivered the warning from the Chancellery while meeting with winners of a youth research competition, shortly after returning from an EU Arctic security summit held in Finland alongside Nordic leaders. During the event, he fielded a range of questions from the young attendees spanning both domestic and global affairs.
When a student asked how international conflict and war are affecting Germany's economy and tech sector, Merz responded that Europeans should brace for a prolonged period of confronting threats to their freedom, citing Russia as the primary source of concern.
He also mounted a defense of his government's move to push military spending to unprecedented levels, insisting the danger facing Europe is real and immediate.
“Sometimes I step back from my desk and think: ‘Damn it, what are we actually doing here?’ We are spending staggering amounts of money on defense,” Merz said.
“Couldn't we do better? Couldn't we put that money to use elsewhere? Yes, of course we could. And I take no pleasure in having to allocate such a large share of the federal budget to defense. If we lived in a peaceful world, we could save a great deal of money.”
“But we do not live in a peaceful world. We see the threat to our freedom.”
Building Europe's Own Tech Arsenal
Merz used the occasion to underscore the urgency of Europe developing independent technological capacity in defense and security. He held up German firm Isar Aerospace as a model of success, pointing to its Spectrum rocket — launched earlier this month from Norway — which successfully carried European-made satellites into orbit.
He argued that Europe can no longer afford to rely on American-built navigation and satellite infrastructure. “We are currently establishing a geostationary satellite system that will make us independent of GPS and Elon Musk,” Merz said, referencing the billionaire entrepreneur whose company SpaceX controls a dominant share of the global commercial launch and satellite market.
In a more personal disclosure, the chancellor revealed that his own aircraft's navigation system had been knocked out mid-flight to northern Europe as a result of Russian electronic jamming.
“Some of you here likely know that I am a pilot myself. I don't fly at the moment, but I did for many years,” he told the students. “I experienced a situation on a flight to Northern Europe where my entire navigation system failed because the Russians were jamming it. We are now making civil aviation less dependent on such vulnerabilities.”
Merz did not specify the date of that flight.
“I was in Finland yesterday, where we held an EU summit on security policy in the Arctic region with the Nordic states. What we were told there did nothing to alleviate my concerns,” Merz said.
“We are seeing a massive threat to our entire undersea infrastructure. Russia is currently building a new class of submarines designed to destroy undersea cables, pipelines, and infrastructure,” he added.
The chancellor delivered the warning from the Chancellery while meeting with winners of a youth research competition, shortly after returning from an EU Arctic security summit held in Finland alongside Nordic leaders. During the event, he fielded a range of questions from the young attendees spanning both domestic and global affairs.
When a student asked how international conflict and war are affecting Germany's economy and tech sector, Merz responded that Europeans should brace for a prolonged period of confronting threats to their freedom, citing Russia as the primary source of concern.
He also mounted a defense of his government's move to push military spending to unprecedented levels, insisting the danger facing Europe is real and immediate.
“Sometimes I step back from my desk and think: ‘Damn it, what are we actually doing here?’ We are spending staggering amounts of money on defense,” Merz said.
“Couldn't we do better? Couldn't we put that money to use elsewhere? Yes, of course we could. And I take no pleasure in having to allocate such a large share of the federal budget to defense. If we lived in a peaceful world, we could save a great deal of money.”
“But we do not live in a peaceful world. We see the threat to our freedom.”
Building Europe's Own Tech Arsenal
Merz used the occasion to underscore the urgency of Europe developing independent technological capacity in defense and security. He held up German firm Isar Aerospace as a model of success, pointing to its Spectrum rocket — launched earlier this month from Norway — which successfully carried European-made satellites into orbit.
He argued that Europe can no longer afford to rely on American-built navigation and satellite infrastructure. “We are currently establishing a geostationary satellite system that will make us independent of GPS and Elon Musk,” Merz said, referencing the billionaire entrepreneur whose company SpaceX controls a dominant share of the global commercial launch and satellite market.
In a more personal disclosure, the chancellor revealed that his own aircraft's navigation system had been knocked out mid-flight to northern Europe as a result of Russian electronic jamming.
“Some of you here likely know that I am a pilot myself. I don't fly at the moment, but I did for many years,” he told the students. “I experienced a situation on a flight to Northern Europe where my entire navigation system failed because the Russians were jamming it. We are now making civil aviation less dependent on such vulnerabilities.”
Merz did not specify the date of that flight.
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