Germany is pushing European partners to create a rapid-response task force in the Baltic Sea region as Berlin confronts what it says is an escalating campaign of Russian hybrid warfare, including an attempted explosives-laden drone attack on one of the country's most important cargo airports.

The initiative, proposed by German Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt following an Aug. 28 meeting in Flensburg, is intended to allow Baltic Sea countries to rapidly exchange information and coordinate responses to hybrid threats ranging from drones and sabotage to cyberattacks, disinformation and attacks on critical infrastructure.

"We want to turn this shared threat environment into a shared security environment," Dobrindt said, warning that hybrid threats were becoming more frequent and sophisticated.

The proposal has taken on new urgency after Germany formally accused Russia this week of responsibility for an attempted Aug. 4 attack at Leipzig/Halle Airport involving a drone carrying explosives.

Retired Air Force Lt. Gen. Richard Newton told Fox News Digital that the episode reflects what he described as a widening pattern of hostile activity.

"We are clearly seeing an escalation in the scope and intensity of Russian gray-zone hostile actions across Europe," Newton said. "Russia has long used a variety of non-military, covert, and hybrid tactics – cyberattacks, information operations, sabotage, other covert means – to create disruption while staying just below the threshold of open conflict with NATO."

Newton called Germany's attribution of the Leipzig plot "particularly serious," saying it "demonstrates how dangerous these operations are becoming."

Germany responded by announcing the closure of Russia's consulate general in Bonn and ending the arrangement governing the Russian House cultural center in Berlin. Berlin also said it would tighten entry controls for Russian nationals and increase pressure on Russia's so-called shadow fleet.

Russia has denied responsibility for the Leipzig incident, calling Germany's accusations "entirely fabricated" and accusing Berlin of escalating tensions, suspected sabotage incidents targeting the country's electricity infrastructure this week.

Authorities were investigating a suspicious device found near a substation in Dormagen, North Rhine-Westphalia, on Friday, following incidents in Bergheim and Brandenburg.

In Bergheim, deliberate interference temporarily forced lignite-fired generating units representing about 4,200 megawatts of capacity offline, though no broader blackout occurred.

German authorities have not publicly connected those power-grid incidents to Russia, a distinction Newton said was important.

"We need to be careful when attributing these hostile acts and ensure we have indisputable intelligence information that clearly leads to the source of these belligerent actions," Newton said.

"The incidents involving Germany’s power infrastructure are still under investigation and have not been publicly attributed to Russia, or any other source for that matter," he added.

The German government nevertheless said Friday that the country faces a persistent hybrid threat.

"Germany is not at war, but it is a daily target of hybrid warfare," threats to undersea cables, pipelines, shipping and other critical infrastructure.

NATO already operates Baltic Sentry, an enhanced vigilance activity launched in 2025 to strengthen protection of critical undersea infrastructure in the Baltic Sea.

In February, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland and Sweden agreed to accelerate the acquisition and integration of new technologies for Baltic naval operations. NATO said that initiative built on testing involving roughly 70 aerial and maritime drones in 2025.

Breedlove said Germany's proposed task force could help bridge intelligence, law-enforcement and military responses among regional partners.

"Germany’s Baltic initiative makes sense," he said. "The value is also for partner countries to share information faster, connect the intelligence, law-enforcement and military pieces, and make decisions before Russia can take advantage of confusion or delay."

Newton similarly said the task force could complement NATO's existing military activity by improving governments' ability to rapidly share intelligence and coordinate security responses.

Breedlove warned that Moscow would continue searching for opportunities to exploit uncertainty.

"Without question, the Russians will keep looking for places where they can create uncertainty and hesitation," he said. "We need to get better at recognizing their actions with speed – and responding forcefully with the strength of our allies."

Fox News Digital reached out to the German Embassy in Washington, D.C., and the Russian Embassy in Washington, D.C., for comment but did not receive responses by publication time.