Outrage in Germany over alleged Russian plot to kill Rheinmetall boss

German politicians are outraged after a CNN report detailed an alleged Russian plot to assassinate the head of German arms maker Rheinmetall, a company that has been key in providing German military aid to Ukraine.

According to the CNN report published on Thursday, US intelligence uncovered Russian government plans to assassinate Armin Papperger, the chief executive of Rheinmetall, earlier this year.

CNN, which cited "five US and western officials familiar with the episode," said German authorities were notified of the plot and as a result increased security for Papperger at the time.

The US broadcaster said a German government official confirmed that Berlin had received the warning.

Rheinmetall has so far not commented on the report.

The chairman of the Defence Committee in the German parliament, Marcus Faber, was among those who immediately reacted to the alleged plot.

"It shows once again that Russia is also bringing its war and terror to Europe," Faber told Germany's Bild tabloid.

"The Putin regime is now also seeking the lives of German citizens."

The chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee, Michael Roth, told Bild that Russian President Vladimir Putin "isn't only waging a war of annihilation against Ukraine, but also against its supporters and our values."

Rheinmetall boss Papperger, who has openly criticized Russia's invasion of Ukraine launched in February 2022, is said to have had personal security for some time.

Rheinmetall is one of the largest European suppliers of armour technology and artillery shells for Ukraine and, according to its own account, the largest manufacturer of artillery ammunition in the western world.

In June, the company opened a repair workshop for armoured personnel carriers in western Ukraine. It also has plans to produce new tanks.

According to CNN, the foiled assassination attempt against Papperger was part of series of planned attacks on the leadership of arms makers across Europe that supply Ukraine with weapons.

German defence policy expert Serap Güler, from the conservative opposition Christian Democrats, told Bild: "In my opinion, our response to this can only be increased support for Ukraine."

Foreign policy expert Roth, from Chancellor Olaf Scholz's Social Democrats, called for a German response that mirrors "the rigour of the democratic constitutional state."

Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said in comments on the sidelines of the NATO summit in Washington that Russia was waging a hybrid war of aggression. Both individuals and companies have been attacked on European territory, she said.