The Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution (BfV) has warned about a current disinformation campaign, which it stated to the “Handelsblatt” is designed to undermine the political standing of Friedrich Merz (CDU) as Federal Chancellor. This campaign is also timed in connection with the state and local elections scheduled for September across Germany.
At the heart of the issue is a German-language video circulating online. The video features the logo of the “Deutsche Welle” and is titled “Internal CDU Documents: Merz Steps Down on August 10.” It falsely claims that the “Handelsblatt” has accessed internal correspondence from the CDU’s federal executive board regarding Merz’s planned resignation. However, the “Handelsblatt” has officially clarified that it does not possess such correspondence, and the website allegedly displayed in the video is a fabrication.
According to the Verfassungsschutz [Office for the Protection of the Constitution], this incident follows a typical pattern of “information manipulation.” The creators intentionally leveraged current political developments in Germany. The authority explained that by incorporating a perceived credible medium like the “Handelsblatt”, the alleged report by the “Deutsche Welle” is artificially made to seem more authentic, thereby boosting its believability.
German security circles suspect the disinformation group “Storm-1516,” which is linked to the Russian Military Intelligence service (GRU), is behind this specific anti-Merz campaign. Generally, the domestic intelligence service notes a rise in such campaigns coinciding with politically significant dates. The BfV stressed that information manipulation is not merely an abstract threat to democracy but is actively employed to focus on and target prominent public figures.
