German foreign minister Anna Lena Berbok called for checking whether the crash of the DHL plane in Vilnius is a hybrid attack. Lithuanian investigators are now inclined to the version of a technical malfunction, but do not rule out a terrorist attack.

Russia has stepped up its hybrid warfare campaign since the beginning of 2022, using cyber attacks, sabotage and other means of influencing European Union countries. Against this background, the crash of a DHL cargo plane in Lithuania, which occurred on Monday, raises serious concerns. Germany has called for a thorough investigation into the possible causes of the tragedy. This is reported by Politico, reports UNN.

"We, together with our Lithuanian and Spanish partners, must seriously consider whether this was a technical accident or another hybrid incident. This underscores the unstable situation we live in even in the very center of Europe," German Foreign Minister Annalena Berbock said.

At the G7 foreign ministers ' meeting in Italy, Burbank highlighted the growing number of hybrid attacks in Europe targeting populations and critical infrastructure. In particular, she mentioned the recent damage to telecommunications cables in the Baltic Sea, which, according to officials, could have been the result of sabotage. At the same time, according to her, Germany is actively cooperating with Lithuania in the investigation of the plane crash to find out its true causes.

Lithuanian investigators have so far found no signs of sabotage. Lithuanian police chief Arunas Paulauskas noted that the crash was probably caused by a technical malfunction or human error, but a terrorist act cannot be ruled out.

"This is one of the versions that we will carefully check. The collection of evidence may take a week," he added.

Recall

The head of the national crisis management center of Lithuania , Vilmantas Vitkauskas, statedthat the plane crash was an accident.

The investigation into the Vilnius disaster continues.

Previously

This year, incidents with DHL have already been linked to possible sabotage. In particular, an explosive device sent from Lithuania caused a fire at a logistics center in Leipzig. Western intelligence agencies then blamed Russia, and the UK continues to investigate a similar case in Birmingham, where a fire broke out at a DHL depot in July.