The Office for the Protection of the Constitution does not expect large violent protests in connection with the high energy prices.
"We currently have no signs of violent mass riots," said the President of the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution, Thomas Haldenwang, of the newspaper "Bild am Sonntag".
Nevertheless, the security authorities are prepared for all scenarios.
The Office for the Protection of the Constitution looks closely to see whether legitimate protests are being hijacked by enemies of democracy.
Haldenwang said: "I do not expect protests that are more violent than at the height of the demonstrations against the state corona measures."
The President for the Protection of the Constitution had already said in mid-August that there were “no signs of widespread anti-state protests or even violent mass riots”.
In July, Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock (Greens) warned of “popular uprisings” in the event of a lack of gas deliveries, but then retracted this statement.
Haldenwang warns against Russian propaganda
Protest researcher Simon Teune from the Freie Universität Berlin expressed his concern to the FAS about pessimistic prophecies such as those about popular uprisings: “Such statements really surprise me.
It expands the scope of rights and conspiracy believers,” he said.
The researcher sees it as part of the strategy of extremists who want a coup that the citizens of the country are unsettled.
“When the perception is established that riots are to be expected, everything is read before this slide.
Every individual who disrupts a politician's performance is then read as a harbinger of these uprisings."
Teune does not rule out protests in autumn and winter either.
It is completely unclear how the situation will develop.
Right-wing groups are heating up the mood on social networks.
The Left Party and the AfD want to call citizens to demonstrations on the street.
President of the Office for the Protection of the Constitution Haldenwang warned against the spread of Russian propaganda.
“Parts of the right-wing extremist scene adopt these slogans from Moscow.
It is remarkable how uncritically some right-wing extremists and right-wing populists turn themselves into (President Vladimir) Putin's mouthpiece and sing his song.