DISINFO: The Greens are behind the destruction of German cars

DISINFORMATION CASE DETAILS

  • Outlet: freedert.online ( archive )
  • Date of publication: February 11, 2025
  • Article language(s): German
  • Countries / regions discussed: Germany, Russia

DISINFO: The Greens are behind the destruction of German cars

SUMMARY

Clogged exhaust pipes: what if it was the Greens themselves? After making the Russians the embodiment of evil, almost anything can create that mix of horror and curiosity that justifies such claims.

Now, with the alleged damage to cars destroyed by the Russians, 270 vehicles have their exhausts blocked with construction foam.

Three suspects have been arrested; one allegedly confessed to receiving instructions via a messenger service, with a fee of 100 euros per sabotaged vehicle. However, as an attempt to influence the election, this fails in terms of scale.

If the story is considered differently, there is a messenger channel promising money to people. This could be anyone. Just because someone online claims to be Russian (assuming the authorities are correct) doesn’t necessarily mean they are Russian.

When you ask the old question, “cui bono” (for whose benefit), the story takes on a different perspective. The Greens, despite being a disaster in governance, excel in advertising, including guerrilla marketing. Their associations and organisations are skilled at turning small actions into convincing PR.

They achieve this on an epic scale, gaining valuable free advertising time in the news, far more effective than standard election ads.

This efficient use of resources mobilises the party’s supporters and helps push the government’s poor record into the background. Unthinkable?

And it never needs additional outside legitimacy. The climate narrative, once effective among supporters, has lost its binding effect, partly due to the climate glue. For now, it needs to be replaced by another reason why the Greens – and only the Greens – stand for the true, good, and beautiful. This variant is far more coherent and realistic than the idea that Russian services would be foolish enough to influence the German parliamentary elections by gluing 270 cars.

RESPONSE

Whataboutism without evidence suggesting that the German Greens are behind a series of car vandalisms in late 2024 to boost their standing in the February 2025 German federal elections. Initially, the attacks were believed to be carried out by environmental activists. However, investigations by Der Spiegel in February 2025 indicate a clear Russian influence operation.

According to Der Spiegel, the investigation revealed that the perpetrators are Russian contractors, not militant climate activists. Security authorities corroborated this information. The attacks, which damaged over 270 vehicles across Germany, aimed to stoke animosity towards the Greens and their candidate for Chancellor, Habeck, during the federal election campaign, intending to fracture societal cohesion.

The Green Party in Germany is a frequent target of Russian disinformation campaigns. The U.S. Department of Justice released evidence showing that the strategy regarding the Green Party aimed to “hold them in contempt”. Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock has warned of disinformation and election manipulation from Russia, emphasising that younger voters and women are particularly susceptible to hate and fake news.

See also our article Pro-Kremlin outlets drool over German elections as well as a similar case German election result known in advance.

Disclaimer

Cases in the EUvsDisinfo database focus on messages in the international information space that are identified as providing a partial, distorted, or false depiction of reality and spread key pro-Kremlin messages. This does not necessarily imply, however, that a given outlet is linked to the Kremlin or editorially pro-Kremlin, or that it has intentionally sought to disinform. EUvsDisinfo publications do not represent an official EU position, as the information and opinions expressed are based on media reporting and analysis of the East Stratcom Task Force.

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