Behind the austere steel and glass facade of the Russian House in Berlin, borscht is on the menu and the bookshelves are stuffed with Tolstoy and Dostoevsky paperbacks.
Also on the premises of the Russian cultural centre is a cinema, screening episodes of Manyunya, a Soviet television comedy.
There is even a travel agency downstairs, for Russians who are so nostalgic for the motherland that they’d rather just book a flight home.
To outsiders, it may seem like an ordinary meeting place for Russian expats.
But German authorities are under growing pressure to close down the Russian House, amid concerns it is merely a front for Kremlin spies and propaganda purposes.
Claims of sanction-busting activities
A senior figure in Germany’s opposition CDU party has warned that the centre is a front for “totalitarian” propaganda, and suspects it could be evading EU sanctions imposed after the invasion of Ukraine.
It could additionally serve as a “hub” for Russian agents according to Roderich Kiesewetter, the CDU’s crisis prevention spokesman and a former general staff officer of the Bundeswehr.
“In view of Russia’s imperial aspirations and totalitarian orientation, Russian cultural institutions must always be regarded as a political instrument,” Mr Kiesewetter told The Telegraph.
“This is exactly why all pro-Russian cultural institutions should be closely investigated and, if necessary, closed.
“The Russian House has long served as an extension of the Kremlin, spreading disinformation and propaganda. Suspected violations of sanctions are also known.”
Asked whether Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s government was taking enough action to address those concerns, he said: “No, not at all. Legally, it is absolutely possible to close the Russian House.”
He also noted: “The Russian House is operated by the government agency Rossotrudnichestvo, which is regarded as an umbrella organisation for a network of Russian compatriots and agents. In this regard, the accusation that the house can also serve as a hub for espionage activities or agent activities is obvious.”
Earlier this week, The Telegraph visited the Russian House, which sits between department stores and souvenir shops on Friedrichstrasse, a bustling boulevard in the city centre.
Visitors are mainly Russian expats
A Russian language bookshop, offering translations of the Harry Potter books and American Marvel comics, is on the same premises.
The glass and concrete building has a security guard and a metal detector stationed at the entrance, and is open to the public.
But the vast majority of its customers appeared to be Russian expats seeking the comforts of Russian food and books, rather than tourists or Germans.
The Russian House appears to be taking care to avoid any displays of political content, following a scandal in October 2022 when the centre screened a Holocaust film which depicted Ukrainians as Nazis, echoing Vladimir Putin’s war propaganda against Kyiv.
The Telegraph understands that the German government is reluctant to close down the Russian House as it fears this would prompt an in-kind response from Moscow, such as the closure of Germany’s cultural centre, the Goethe Institute, in the Russian capital.
A spokesman for Germany’s foreign office said: “At the instigation of the German federal government, the operating organisation of the Russian House has been sanctioned across the EU since July 21, 2022.
“The listing results in a freeze of all assets located in the EU for the operating organisation Rossotrudnichestvo. In addition, a comprehensive ban on making assets available is imposed, meaning that EU legal entities may not directly or indirectly make economic resources or financial means available to the organisation or its affiliated entities.”
Germany ‘a prime target’ for Russian spying
Speaking to a reporter earlier this year, Pavel Izvolsky, the director of Russian House, said he did not know why EU sanctions had been imposed on the agency that controlled his centre.
He said: “I don’t know why Rossotrudnichestvo is under sanctions. It was a decision of Brussels and the EU. It came as a big surprise for me. There are many ministries of the Russian government. Why did they sanction us and not the defence ministry? I don’t understand it.”
Germany is one of Ukraine’s biggest financial supporters, committing £21 billion in crisis funding and weapons, such as Leopard tanks, infantry fighting vehicles, and Patriot air defence systems.
It has stopped short of sending powerful, long-range Taurus missiles to Ukraine as Mr Scholz is concerned this could prompt major retaliation by Putin against Germany, which does not have its own nuclear weapons programme.
German intelligence chiefs have warned that decades of lax security and pro-Russian sentiment in the former Communist east have made their country a prime target for Russian spying and sabotage.
Earlier this month, Germany and the United States reportedly foiled a plot to assassinate Armin Papperger, the chief executive of Rheinmetall, a German arms firm which is providing support for the Ukrainian army.
In April, German authorities arrested two German-Russian citizens on suspicion of plotting to sabotage US military sites in Bavaria, which also provide assistance to Ukraine.
The post Cultural asset or spy hub? Inside the Russian centre Germany is under pressure to close appeared first on The Telegraph.
