Germany Aims to Expand Intelligence Powers Amid Rising Hybrid Threats

Germany's Intelligence Agency Reforms

By Andreas Rinke and Sarah Marsh

BERLIN, Feb 4 (Reuters) - Germany's government wants to give its spy agencies broader powers to confront rising hybrid threats, a sensitive step in a country where intelligence operations remain tightly constrained by post-war limits designed to prevent a repeat of Nazi abuses.

Many attacks on Germany in recent years were thwarted only thanks to intelligence shared by allies whose agencies operate with wider powers, Thorsten Frei, head of the German chancellor's office, acknowledged this week.

Proposed Changes to BND

Frei, of the ruling conservatives, is calling for a "paradigm shift" that would allow the foreign intelligence agency, the BND, to deploy more intrusive surveillance tools, including access to private mobile phones and the ability to store data for up to a year.

"The aim is to be on an equal footing with our European partners in the field of intelligence gathering," he told Tagesspiegel newspaper.

"Intelligence services cooperate worldwide, and the only hard currency that counts is information."

Long dogged by questions over Nazi-era continuities, the BND has sought to define itself against Germany's two darkest intelligence legacies: Nazi repression and the Stasi's surveillance state.

That history must now be weighed against the heightened threats facing Germany, Frei said.

"In a time that is becoming increasingly threatening, we cannot stop at intelligence gathering alone," he said. "To protect our country, we must also put our services in a position to carry out certain operations."

MORE POWERS

Beyond collecting and analysing data, the BND should also be empowered to disrupt radio links during drone attacks and to disable so-called cryptocurrency wallets used to finance murders or acts of sabotage, he said.

Criticism from Opposition

Frei said legislation to reform the agency should be adopted this year, although it is likely to face resistance from opposition parties. No draft bill has yet been submitted to the Bundestag.

He also wants oversight of the BND to be concentrated in parliament's intelligence control committee, rather than requiring the agency to answer additionally to the so-called G10 commission, which monitors surveillance measures that interfere with communications privacy.

The proposals have drawn criticism from the opposition.

"Anyone who at the same time wants to extend data-retention periods and reduce oversight bodies is acting recklessly and blind to democracy," senior Left Party lawmaker Clara Buenger was quoted as saying by Tagesspiegel.

She warned that the plans represented "a massive leap in powers and in escalation risk."

Domestic Intelligence Upgrades

Separately, Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt is pushing for similar upgrades to the domestic intelligence agency, the BfV, to allow it more surveillance methods and operational capabilities.

Both agencies have seen sharp increases in their budgets of more than 25% this year.

(Reporting by Andreas Rinke and Sarah Marsh; Editing by Ros Russell)