A confidential memo from state interior ministers has revealed escalating alarm over the increasing frequency of drone incursions across Germany, prompting urgent calls for a significant bolstering of federal resources and coordination. The document, leaked to the Süddeutsche Zeitung, highlights a “distinct increase” in sightings of drones posing potential security threats, particularly over critical infrastructure including ports, airports, security and defense industry facilities and military installations.
The interior ministers express deep concern that this trend represents “a threat to public safety and order, as well as the interests of our state”. While the recently established joint drone defense center of the federal government and states is acknowledged, it’s deemed insufficient given the evolving geopolitical landscape. The memo stresses the necessity to “bundle all resources” to effectively address the situation and maintain the operational capacity of both the government and society.
A key demand placed upon the Federal Interior Ministry is the development of a coordinated framework for collaboration between federal and state agencies in the detection and counteraction of drone operations, to be presented before the next interior ministers’ conference in June. Critical to this framework is clarifying the roles and powers of the German Armed Forces (Bundeswehr), the Federal Police (Bundespolizei), state police forces and other security services.
Beyond increased operational response, the memo underscores significant gaps in current anti-drone capabilities, notably the lack of effective information sharing regarding the individuals controlling the drones. Officials are now pressing for the creation of a centralized database, managed by the federal government, to register the operators of illegal drone flights. Such a database would ideally allow investigators to identify repeat offenders and uncover patterns indicative of organized operations. The absence of this capability is severely impeding investigative efforts and hindering a proactive approach to security.
The document implicitly suggests a growing unease within the German security apparatus and reflects a recognition that existing protective measures are inadequate against an increasingly sophisticated and potentially hostile drone threat.
