A MARTÍNEZ, HOST:
We're following major breaches of top spy agencies, one admitted to in the U.S. and one alleged in Germany. On Tuesday, a former senior CIA official pleaded guilty to making up highly classified programs in order to get access to government funds, including gold bars. He also admitted to giving information about a secret U.S. source to a foreign official.
MICHEL MARTIN, HOST:
In Germany, a former head of the country's foreign intelligence agency, August Hanning, will be brought before a federal judge today to face charges that include espionage and attempted treason.
MARTÍNEZ: Yeah. His arrest comes as German officials debate a bill to give intelligence agencies more powers and also amid warnings of Russia's growing threat to national security.
MARTIN: For more, we're joined by Esme Nicholson in Berlin. Esme, good morning.
ESME NICHOLSON, BYLINE: Good morning, Michel.
MARTIN: So prosecutors say Hanning used classified information to make money since leaving office two decades ago. Can you just give us more details?
NICHOLSON: Well, yeah. First of all, I think let's be clear about the magnitude of these allegations. August Hanning served as the head of Germany's CIA equivalent, known here as the BND, for seven years from 1998 to 2005. Federal prosecutors accuse Hanning of using classified information to brief a foreign intelligence agency in at least one instance. That amounts to attempted treason. And prosecutors also believe that Hanning was in close contact with a member of another foreign intelligence agency to whom he passed sensitive political information.
He allegedly shared information for 12 years, all after he left office. And prosecutors believe he did it with the help of his former chief of staff, a man they've named as Manfred D., who was also arrested yesterday. This high-ranking aide actually continued to serve Hanning's three successors until he retired earlier this year. And prosecutors say he passed on more than 2,000 classified documents to his former boss in return for payment. Now, we reached out to Hanning's lawyers, but they declined to comment.
MARTIN: And what do we know about who may have been benefiting from his alleged services?
NICHOLSON: Well, federal prosecutors have not yet disclosed who his alleged clients were or which foreign intelligence agencies were allegedly involved. And while the German press, including Die Welt and Der Spiegel, is reporting that Russia is not involved, this has not stopped speculation among German lawmakers. The deputy chair of the Bundestag's intelligence oversight committee, Konstantin von Notz, has demanded a thorough probe. Here he is speaking to public broadcaster ZDF.
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KONSTANTIN VON NOTZ: (Speaking German).
NICHOLSON: He says, "naturally, questions are being asked as to whether information was leaked to Russia," adding that the suspicion alone is outrageous. And it's worth pointing out here that this alleged, very high-profile security breach is not an exception at Germany's foreign intelligence agency. The organization's former head of Russian counterintelligence is currently on trial for allegedly spying for Russia.
MARTIN: So how damaging is this to German intelligence?
NICHOLSON: Well, I think to say this is a major blow to Germany's security apparatus is putting it mildly. Prosecutors allege that Hanning's former aide passed on documents that were meant only for internal high-level briefings or for the German chancellor. So it raises concerns about the credibility of Germany's intelligence agencies, especially among its Western allies, and whether their own agents have been compromised. And the arrests come as the new head of foreign intelligence, Martin Jager, warns that Russia is waging what he calls a shadow war in Germany, which includes sabotage, cyberattacks and disinformation campaigns. So the fallout from this is not only humiliating, but potentially dangerous.
MARTIN: That is Esme Nicholson in Berlin. Esme, thank you.
NICHOLSON: Thank you, Michel. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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