In Germany, a trial began against a group of rebels led by a local aristocrat. The conspirators planned to carry out an armed coup in the country and turned to Russia for help.
What is known about the failed attempt of an armed coup in Germany
According to the journalists of the publication, the first court session was held on May 21 in Frankfurt am Main.
It is noted that the trial is a direct continuation of the largest anti-terrorist operation in Germany's modern history, conducted in December 2022.
German law enforcement officers managed to prevent a coup attempt led by Heinrich XIII Prince Reuss, a German businessman and aristocrat.
Reuss, according to journalists, created his own group "Citizens of the Reich", planning to overthrow the current government in the country.
The trial began in Frankfurt am Main on Tuesday. The court found that during the preparation of the putsch, Reiss tried to establish contact with Vladimir Putin and the Night Wolves group. He met several times with representatives of the Russian embassy. In intercepted telephone conversations, he stated that he would have to “load the Kalashnikov.” “I will kill them,” he said of members of the German government, the newspaper reported.
Participant of the uprising, former judge and member of the Bundestag, Birgit Malzak-Winkeman, explained the purchase of weapons by the group as the need to prepare for a possible attack by the Russian Federation.
It is also known that Reuss's "girlfriend" was a native of Kaliningrad.
What is known about the rebels' attempts to enlist the support of the Kremlin
The authors of the material emphasise that part of the members of the extremist group intended to eliminate the top leadership of Germany and had connections with former military officials and a former member of the Bundestag from "Alternative for Germany".
In 2022, more than 100 searches were simultaneously carried out on alleged members of the "anti-constitutional group" of the "Reichsbuerger" ideology, and approximately 20 arrests were made in Berlin, Thuringia, Baden-Württemberg and Saxony.
The investigators found out that the extremists planned to storm the building of the German parliament and bought 1,300 weapons for this purpose.
4-5 thousand people were supposed to participate in the coup. An ex-deputy of the Bundestag gave them a plan of an underground passage to the parliament building, but the police were only a day ahead of the rebels.
It was established that in June 2022, the conspirators tried to schedule a meeting at the Consulate General of the Russian Federation to discuss the possibility of Moscow recognising the future government headed by Reuss.
Also, one of the conspirators turned to the Consulate General of the Russian Federation in Leipzig with the question of whether Moscow is ready to "support German resistance groups".
The Russian vice-consul scheduled a meeting for December 8, but the rebel was arrested by that time.
