After claims that he had established an association with Russia in an uncomfortably close manner, Germany's head of cybersecurity was fired. Since 2016, Arne Schönbohm served as the head of the Federal Cyber Security Authority (BSI), which is responsible for securing government communications. He has been charged with having connections to individuals connected to Russian intelligence services by German media.

He is the subject of an investigation by the interior ministry. It did, however, confirm that he had been let go with immediate effect. Mr. Schönbohm was under investigation after Jan Böhmermann, the host of one of Germany's most well-liked late-night TV shows, brought up his possible connections to a Russian corporation through a prior position.

Prior to taking over the BSI, Mr. Schönbohm assisted in founding and managing the Cyber Security Council Germany, a private organization that provides business and policymakers with cybersecurity advice. The association's 10th anniversary celebrations were held in September, and he is claimed to have continued to keep close ties with them. Protelion, a cybersecurity firm that was a branch of a Russian company allegedly founded by a former KGB agent honored by President Vladimir Putin, was one of the association's members. The allegations of connections to Russian intelligence are unfounded, according to Cyber Security Council Germany, which expelled Protelion from the group last weekend.

The termination of Mr. Schönbohm appears to be in response to the recent reports, according to a spokesperson for Interior Minister Nancy Faeser, who stated: "The background to this is not least the claims published and widely discussed in the media." The statement continued, "Necessary public confidence in his leadership as head of the most significant German cybersecurity agency has been harmed." However, they emphasized that the security head would be "presumed innocent" while the claims were being investigated.

Der Spiegel, a German news outlet, previously claimed that Mr. Schönbohm had asked for formal disciplinary action to be taken against him after the government gave him no "feedback" about the initial claims. According to him, he is still unsure of "what the ministry has investigated and what the specific claims against me look like."

As it intensifies its backing for Ukraine, Berlin is reportedly growing more anxious that Russian intelligence agents could strike its vital infrastructure. The defence ministry revealed last week that it will send Kyiv four anti-air defense systems. According to reports, a single IRIS-T unit can defend a whole city from aerial attacks.

Sources