WASHINGTON, April 21. /TASS/. Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov on Friday rebuffed allegations about Russia’s supposed interference in Germany’s internal affairs and attempts to undermine Western unity on the Ukraine conflict.
"This is one hundred percent fake," Peskov told the Washington Post. "We never interfered before [in the domestic affairs of other countries] and we really don’t have the time for it now," he assured the newspaper, commenting on the reported content of dossiers from European intelligence services seen by the WaPo.
The documents allege that the Kremlin interfered in Germany’s internal affairs, seeking to facilitate the formation of a political coalition that would oppose any provision of assistance to Ukraine. According to the newspaper, Moscow was also planning to foster antiwar sentiment in Europe and thereby dampen Western support for Kiev. However, the materials contain no concrete information on purported interactions between Russian political strategists and their contacts in Germany. All the relevant European intelligence agencies allegedly know is that a person close to Sahra Wagenknecht, former leader of Germany’s Die Linke (The Left) party, who organized demonstrations in Berlin in support of peace initiatives for Ukraine, had been in contact with Russian officials.
In late February, thousands of demonstrators gathered at the Brandenburg Gate in central Berlin to protest against weapons shipments to Kiev and further escalation of the conflict. They also demanded that peace talks be held as soon as possible. Protesters carried banners with such slogans as: "Diplomacy, not weapons," "This is not our war," and "German weapons are again killing Russians and Ukrainians."
Earlier, Wagenknecht and Alice Schwarzer, a prominent German journalist and feminist, as well as other German activists, launched a petition calling for diplomatic efforts to focus on achieving peace in Ukraine, rather than on supplying weapons.