Russian man charged with espionage goes on trial in Germany
By KIRSTEN GRIESHABER
Associated Press
BERLIN (AP) — A Russian man who worked as a research assistant at a German university has gone on trial for alleged espionage. The defendant, identified only as Ilnur N. in line with German privacy rules, was arrested in June and accused of passing information about European rockets to Russian intelligence. German news agency dpa reported that he rejected the allegations and told the trial court in Munich on Thursday: “I am not an agent.” Before his arrest, the Russian man worked as a research assistant at the University of Augsburg. German prosecutors say the he shared information about aerospace research projects with a Russian consulate employee who also worked for Russia’s SVR foreign intelligence service.
