Authorities suspect that the water at the site may have been contaminated on purpose. At another NATO base, also in western Germany, security levels have been raised.
(DW) The Cologne-Wahn military base in western Germany has been sealed off following an alleged act of sabotage against its water supply, the German press reported on Wednesday (14/08).
The site is close to Cologne-Bonn airport and employs 4,300 soldiers and 1,200 civilians, as well as housing a fleet of military aircraft used, for example, for international trips by German Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz.
According to Der Spiegel magazine, the authorities have told the base’s employees not to drink the tap water, as they believe it has been contaminated. Damage to a fence on the property was observed.
The police have cordoned off a large area, not allowing any movement in or out of the site and, together with the military and NATO’s intelligence agency, are investigating the alleged crime, according to information from Spiegel.
“We have our reasons for taking this action and we take the case seriously,” said a spokesman for the Territorial Command in Berlin, according to the Reuters news agency.
Attention also in Geilenkirchen
Security levels at a NATO air base in the city of Geilenkirchen, also in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia, the same as Cologne, were raised after the incident, but the base was not cordoned off.
“The base [in Geilenkirchen] was not cordoned off at any time. We’ve checked the water, everything is fine, and the base is accessible,” said a NATO spokesman, quoted by Reuters.
Earlier in the day, a German military spokesman had said that the base in Geilenkirchen had been cordoned off due to a small “irregularity that was discovered in daily work”. One person was found nearby and removed.
The spokesman also pointed out that “Cologne-Wahn and Geilenkirchen are two completely different events and the incident in Geilenkirchen did not have any serious consequences.”
Increase in Russian attacks
It is not yet known who carried out the sabotage, but NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg recently warned that Russian intelligence was becoming bolder in its operations against the alliance’s member countries – both in terms of cyber attacks and field operations.
Poland, the United Kingdom and the Czech Republic have reported similar incidents in recent months.
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