The evening will feature an author reading followed by a discussion: Reinhard Bingener and Markus Wehner (FAZ) will discuss their book and the topic "How the axis of autocrats is infiltrating Germany" with Sabine Adler (Deutschlandfunk). The event is being held in cooperation with the publisher C.H.Beck.
China and Russia, Iran and Turkey - autocrats use a variety of strategies in the battle of the systems to systematically undermine Western democracies. Their new form of silent and covert but effective hybrid warfare has long since reached Germany. Following their SPIEGEL bestseller "The Moscow Connection", the two FAZ journalists Reinhard Bingener and Markus Wehner trace in their new work how the threatening axis of autocratic states is attacking Germany and what dangers this poses for our society and institutions.
They come to the conclusion that politicians, authorities and most citizens in this country have been far too naive for a long time. The autocrats have therefore had and continue to have an easy time weakening us. They deploy a new kind of agent on our territory, commission murders and exploit the vulnerability of critical infrastructure for acts of sabotage. They corrupt decision-makers, support extremist parties or groups and instrumentalize refugee flows as a weapon. They spread questionable narratives via foreign media, influence portals and trolls and sow doubts about our democracy. And they carry out cyber attacks on state institutions. In the "turn of an era", the West is increasingly threatened by a covert war, which is why a new robustness and intelligence is needed to counter the dangers. At the Bergson Academy, the authors will show you how we in Germany and Europe are trying to counteract this and what changes are needed to protect ourselves more effectively in the future. One thing is certain: We will need staying power in this crucial confrontation.
About the authors
Reinhard Bingener and Markus Wehner are editors in the politics section of the FAZ. In 2023, they published the SPIEGEL bestseller "Die Moskau-Connection" with C.H.Beck, an investigative book about the Russian network of former German Chancellor Gerhard Schröder and Germany's path to dependence on the Putin regime. Bingener has been reporting on Lower Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt and Bremen as well as the Protestant churches in Germany as a correspondent based in Hanover since August 2014. His colleague Markus Wehner has been reporting on politics in Thuringia and Saxony from Erfurt since April 2024 after several stints (including as Moscow correspondent for his newspaper).
Admission: 18:00
Start: 19:00
End: 20:30
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