Tsk tsk, spies everywhere. Is Germany saying it does NOT engage in espionage? Only non-Germans do? Right. I always thought another name for spy was "cultural attache", but perhaps I've read too much Le Carre.

Yes industrial espionage makes sense. And represents a big step forward in Russian/Western relations. Industrial espionage is linked to business and innovation. Military espionage is linked to wars and war planning. So Russian's try to get technology on the cheap by spying. Well who can resist the allure of something for nothing. The story suggests there are some even in Germany who haven't got over the Cold War. Other than that its a so what story.

“He recalled a phrase by Alexander III of Russia...” So, Germans are living not even in the outdated Cold War world, but, somewhere in the deeper past -- middle centuries? Nice. What kind of technologies, then, they afraid to lose to Russians? The swords? Also, I am wondering how Germany manages to lose €50 billion a year because of Russia's stealing, if Russia doesn't produce any high-tech (presumably, using stolen techonology) which would allow them to compete with Germany and, accordingly, to take “German's money”?

Who cares,certain types of spying is necessary,on tosspots who dont like your way of living,technology and other types of spying thats life ,Live with it.Every now and then do the usual send some back, from each country ,and carry on as usual.No big deal.

Efectively Russia doesn't need to steal industrial technology to make any thing it wants, If Russia has not done things like others is because his focus was different , but now reorienting his great deal of knowledge it is only a matter of litlle time to show and astonih even more the whole world. Russia always has been a motive of envy because; Has been the more independent country; It is capable to defend by itself; Has created its own technologies; Has people really proud of their land and theirs roots; Has a great deal of natural resources; has the more extensive land of the world; bastion of great scientifics. Nobody wants it like competitor.

The largest robbery of German patents and technology took place under the Morgenthau Plan after WWII, when whole economic sectors from Germany like Aircraft, Aerospace, Chemical etc, were almost completely lost and only partially rebuilt years later with new patents. American and Soviet post-War economic expansion was based at an important degree on stolen German patents, factories and brain drain.

I have never come across a a news site that is as biased as this website, its even worse than the Americans, and they know propaganda!

Germans don't need to spy...They steal technology their own way...They have all the tools of a wealthy nation; Many of their engineers are eastern European, They buy out companies with new technologies, They buy products and reverse engineer them, They simply steal designs from poor people who don't have patents..I witnessed this in the Dominican Republic... A German industrial engineer visiting the D.R. as an NGO simply bought a small portable grill with a unique design from a vendor & said with a few 'improvements' he could sell lots of them in the EU.....'ZERGUT' a German food company has stolen,processed & sells many of the unique food products of eastern Europe....Large international corporations like 'SIEMENS' own the intellectual property of all their international employees.......With all of this why would the Germans cry about a little espionage?