Süddeutsche Zeitung · Dec. 2025 · Russian House Berlin Press Kit

What the article covers

Most extensive portrait to date – 12-minute read, professional photo essay by Friedrich Bungert
Live reportage from the "major battle day" 9 December 2025: Russian House files a counter-demonstration to block Lindemeier's protest – police enforce it
Over 100 complaints filed against Lindemeier, three criminal penalty orders
Green MP Robin Wagener and CDU foreign policy spokesman Roderich Kiesewetter call for closure
Bavarian Administrative Court, 24 June 2025: Bundesbank was correct to refuse electricity payments
2011 treaty: unilateral termination only possible after 99 years

Why it matters The most powerful journalistic investigation to date – with a court ruling, political statements and live documentation of the tactic used by the Russian House to suppress legitimate protest through counter-demonstrations.

Sanctions & legal situation

Rossotrudnitschestwo on EU sanctions list since July 2022 – asset freeze, prohibition on making funds available
Despite this: language courses, restaurant, concerts, theatre continue
Berlin public prosecutor investigating for violations of the Foreign Trade and Payments Act

Money & treaty

Germany pays €70,000/year in property tax from federal budget – required by 2011 bilateral agreement
Treaty can only be terminated unilaterally after 99 years – earliest 2110
Bavarian Administrative Court, 24 June 2025: Bundesbank acted correctly in refusing to pay electricity bills

Protest & police

9 December 2025: Russian House filed counter-demo "Do not be provoked!" – Lindemeier's protest banned
Over 100 complaints, three criminal penalty orders against Lindemeier

This article was originally published in German. The following is an English summary of the key content.

Henry Lindemeier pulls the fabric of his Ukrainian flag over the aluminium pole, slings a Bluetooth speaker over his shoulder and hangs a sign around his neck. From his collar peeks the yellow trident of Ukraine's coat of arms, embroidered into his T-shirt. He slams the boot of his car, locks it. Then he marches off, into his fight.

Henry Lindemeier, 63 years old, glasses, shoulder-length hair, entrepreneur, psychotherapist, tango dancer and friend of hand-rolled cigarettes, is now walking up Friedrichstraße with his flag pole on his shoulder. It is 9 December – what he calls his "major battle day".

For a year and a half, Lindemeier has been staging what is probably the longest one-man protest in Germany in front of the Russian House – for Ukraine, for a free Europe, for the closure of the Russian House.

"It cannot be that the German state finances this hostile Russia a place it can use as a base for its hybrid war against free Europe." – Henry Lindemeier

For 9 December, the operators of the Russian House had simply registered their own event: "Do not be provoked!" Lindemeier found out the night before. The police informed him that he could not hold his protest in front of the House on that day. Around twenty police officers stand in front of the entrance. They are there because of Henry Lindemeier.

In 2023, the Bundesbank's financial sanctions centre refused to settle bills for the Russian House – because the high energy costs indicated commercial activity and therefore a possible sanctions violation. The Russian House went to court. The Bavarian Administrative Court ruled on 24 June 2025: the bank had acted correctly.

"The Russians have won." – Henry Lindemeier, at the end of his major battle day

Lindemeier wonders sometimes whose freedom the police are actually defending here. He is appalled that on his major battle day he is not even allowed to display the Ukrainian flag in front of the Russian House as a private individual.

📄 Download full article as PDF (German)