France’s top domestic intelligence official has warned that the attempted drone attack at Germany’s Leipzig/Halle Airport could signal a shift toward “more direct, more violent” hybrid attacks against critical infrastructure and strategic industries in Europe.
Céline Berthon, director of France’s DGSI domestic intelligence agency, said Wednesday that France was assessing the possibility of similar attacks against companies and infrastructure on French territory.
“The discovery in Leipzig of an explosive drone that was by all appearances aimed at an aircraft supporting the Ukrainian army is a signal that we must consider the possibility of more direct, more violent actions on our territory,” Berthon told a business forum in France.
An explosives-laden drone was discovered on Aug. 4 near a Ukrainian Antonov cargo aircraft at Leipzig/Halle Airport, a major cargo and logistics hub used by NATO and Ukraine’s Antonov Airlines.
Berthon said France’s defense and technology industries faced the most immediate threat, but warned that other strategic sectors, including energy and communications, could also become targets.
She described a “meteoric” increase in hybrid threats since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, ranging from cyber intrusions to acts of violence carried out through local proxies.
Berthon did not identify who France believes was behind the Leipzig incident.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said Tuesday that Berlin would soon announce who investigators believe was responsible for the attempted attack. Moscow has denied involvement.
The French intelligence chief also warned that hybrid operations routinely target economic, scientific and government institutions and could be used to disrupt elections. France is due to hold a presidential election in 2027.
France warns it is falling behind in drone warfare
France’s armed forces chief, Gen. Fabien Mandon, separately warned that the country was lagging behind potential adversaries in producing inexpensive drones and developing defenses capable of responding to mass drone attacks.
“Dronization is a reality,” Mandon said, pointing to the enormous number of drones now being deployed in Russia’s war against Ukraine.
“Every night 800 to 1,000 drones leave Ukraine for Russia. The Russians have roughly equivalent production,” he said.
France’s existing defense model performs well against traditional threats, Mandon said, but potential adversaries have increasingly turned toward cheaper weapons produced in large quantities.
“We have a model for defense that performs extremely well against what we knew,” he said. “Now we have enemies that have developed cheap solutions in large quantities.”
“We are not there,” Mandon added.
Security concerns have increasingly dominated discussions among French political and business leaders as President Emmanuel Macron pushes industry to adapt to what he has described as a “war economy.”