Two workers, a 37-year-old Romanian and a 54-year-old Greek, were arrested on suspicion of sabotaging German warships at Hamburg harbour in 2025. They tampered with vessels by pouring more than 20 kg of steel pellets into an engine block, puncturing freshwater lines, removing fuel tank caps, and disabling fuses in onboard electronics. The sabotage was discovered during pre-departure checks on the corvette 'Emden' preparing for its inaugural journey to Kiel. The accused were arrested in Hamburg and a Greek village, with residences in Hamburg, Romania, and Greece searched. According to Greek court documents, they were tasked with painting work on the corvette 'Koeln' in June 2025 but manually shut the control panel and cut power risking fire. Items confiscated from the Greek man's home include six mobile phones, three USB sticks, a SIM card, a hard drive, and evidence of 19 bank accounts. Germany's defense ministry did not comment. A spokesperson declined to say if Russia was suspected, although political and military leaders have accused Russia of sabotage and hybrid warfare since 2022; Russia denies this.

Two workers, a 37-year-old Romanian and a 54-year-old Greek, were arrested on suspicion of sabotaging German warships at Hamburg harbour in 2025. They tampered with vessels by pouring more than 20 kg of steel pellets into an engine block, puncturing freshwater lines, removing fuel tank caps, and disabling fuses in onboard electronics. The sabotage was discovered during pre-departure checks on the corvette 'Emden' preparing for its inaugural journey to Kiel. The accused were arrested in Hamburg and a Greek village, with residences in Hamburg, Romania, and Greece searched. According to Greek court documents, they were tasked with painting work on the corvette 'Koeln' in June 2025 but manually shut the control panel and cut power risking fire. Items confiscated from the Greek man's home include six mobile phones, three USB sticks, a SIM card, a hard drive, and evidence of 19 bank accounts. Germany's defense ministry did not comment. A spokesperson declined to say if Russia was suspected, although political and military leaders have accused Russia of sabotage and hybrid warfare since 2022; Russia denies this.