US and Germany foil Russian assassination plot

What happened

The U.S. and Germany have reportedly thwarted a Russian plot to kill the CEO of German arms manufacturer Rheinmetall, which has been producing shells and tanks for Ukraine.

Who said what

The plot to kill Armin Papperger (pictured above) was one of a series of Russian plans to assassinate defense industry executives across Europe, according to five U.S. and Western officials who spoke anonymously to CNN.

Russian military intelligence has carried out a "series of arsons aimed at disrupting the supply of weapons and other materiel to Ukraine," said The New York Times. But the assassination plot was a significant escalation, officials said. "Russia's intensifying campaign of subversion is something that we are taking extremely seriously," said U.S. National Security Council spokesperson Adrienne Watson in a statement.

What next?

A senior NATO official told CNN that Russia's sabotage campaign was ramping up because Moscow sees a window of opportunity before additional Western munitions arrive on the battlefield in Ukraine. For Russia, this "is a prime time to target the West in these types of operations to try to undermine support and prevent the flow of weapons there," the unnamed official said.

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