Ex-German spy chief Hanning challenged agency over spy allegations

Former German intelligence chief August Hanning angrily challenged his successor after learning that the BND, the agency he once headed, had passed allegations that he was a Russian spy to investigators. In a three-page letter sent on August 17, less than three months before his arrest this week, Hanning demanded answers to 11 questions from BND President Martin Jäger.

Hanning complained that the BND had passed allegations by a former intelligence agent that he was a Russian spy to investigators without consulting him, according to WELT. Jäger did not respond to the letter at the time, Hanning told WELT before his arrest.

Hanning's subsequent arrest, including on suspicion of attempted treason, has caused considerable concern abroad. Grzegorz Malecki, the former head of Poland’s foreign intelligence service, told WELT that the case was “extremely concerning” and could deepen allies’ distrust of the BND, potentially undermining intelligence-sharing with Germany.

The BND has also raised eyebrows within Germany’s intelligence community over allegations that it allowed Hanning’s former chief of staff, who is also in custody, to work for Hanning outside his official duties. Günter Heiss, a former intelligence coordinator under former Chancellor Angela Merkel, stated that any approval for such outside employment would have had to be decided at the senior management level.

Bernd Schmidbauer, a former minister of state and intelligence coordinator under Chancellor Helmut Kohl, told WELT that Hanning had made major contributions to Germany’s national security, calling the affair a “tragedy for the German intelligence services, but also for the former senior official himself.” Hanning led the BND from 1998 to 2005.