Putin's puppets. The secret network of the German economy

Putins Marionetten. Das geheime Netzwerk der deutschen Wirtschaft

"No matter what Putin did, the German economy remained untouchable!" Renowned business journalist Birgit Jennen attests to Germany's "very blind export model" - to this day. Vladimir Putin has used this course. A problem with Russia has been obvious since 2014 at the latest, with the annexation of Crimea and the start of the war in Donbass. But Germany continued to trade with Russia. Did the economy have too much influence on German politics? asks Birgit Jennen in her latest book. The author shows how Germany's economy sometimes acted against security interests, influenced politics - and also had the support of former high-ranking police and secret service officers.

Economic ties with Russia have existed for a very long time. The explosive question, however, is when the connections became a security threat. The book supplements the discussion about institutional and political failure with the economic and financial links that influenced political decisions over the years and had an impact on the security sector. Here, too, connections to the fugitive Wirecard manager and Putin agent Jan Marsalek are revealed and dealt with.

Someone probably didn't like the book project: strange incidents suddenly began to pile up: Emails disappeared, the trunk of her car was left open twice, a guest from Bulgaria trashed her vacation apartment. The matter was never resolved. But one thing is clear: Jennen's findings are highly controversial.

PARTICIPANTSBirgit Jennen Journalist, author

MODERATIONProf. Dr. Helmut Müller-Enbergs, political scientistTranslated with DeepL

Next date:

• Date Tuesday, 23/June/2026 19:00
• Venue Deutsches Spionagemuseum
• Address Leipziger Platz 9, 10117 Berlin-Mitte