Act instead of merely watching. Move from defence to offence. This is how German media have commented on a draft law through which the German government aims to make its intelligence services more effective.
“We are turning our intelligence services into genuine secret services,” said interior minister Alexander Dobrindt. And while this may sound surprising, Germany has not until now had a genuine secret service of the kind operating in other Western countries.
German media have described it as both a security revolution and a historic moment.
“It is high time we positioned ourselves to be competitive and on an equal footing with our partner services around the world. This requires operational capabilities and active powers to tackle modern state terrorism and extremist groups more effectively,” Dobrindt said.
The change has been prompted by the escalating hybrid attacks and sabotage the country faces.
