Overview
- Martin Jaeger was inaugurated as head of Germany’s BND, succeeding Bruno Kahl after serving as ambassador to Ukraine.
- Chancellor Friedrich Merz said Germany faces one of its gravest security situations since World War Two, pointing to sabotage, espionage and disinformation attempts against infrastructure.
- Merz urged the BND to perform at a level matching Germany’s size and economic strength and called for a more proactive intelligence posture across civilian, military and technical domains.
- Jaeger pledged deeper cooperation with European and international partners and vowed to confront opponents where possible, saying the BND is “a force to be reckoned with.”
- Merz spoke of increasingly aggressive systemic rivals without naming countries, as officials have warned about hybrid threats from Russia and China, and he offered no specific reforms or budget details.