Azerbaijan has denied reports it obtained German state secrets from former BND chief August Hanning, who was arrested for treason. The 80-year-old, who retired in 2009, allegedly sold thousands of highly classified documents to a former colleague over 16 years. Prosecutors say he prepared analyses for foreign intelligence services, with Der Spiegel reporting an Azerbaijani agent may have been the intended recipient.
Hanning, who served as head of Germany’s foreign intelligence service and later worked as a private consultant for clients including the German-Azerbaijan forum, was arraigned in Karlsruhe. The case has raised concerns over the unchecked commercial work of former spies. German law prohibits selling state secrets.
Azerbaijan’s media council called the allegations a smear campaign. Hanning previously faced controversy for spying on journalists during his BND tenure.
Source: Financial Times Companies · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing