BRUSSELS: The European Union on Friday condemned alleged Russian cyber attacks that have targeted Germany in the run up to this weekend's election for Chancellor Angela Merkel's successor, reports AFP.

"Some EU Member States have observed malicious cyber activities, collectively designated as 'Ghostwriter', and associated these with the Russian state," foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said.

Borrell's statement said the EU and its member states "strongly denounce these malicious cyber activities, which all involved must put to an end immediately".

"We urge the Russian Federation to adhere to the norms of responsible state behaviour in cyberspace," it said, adding that the bloc would "consider taking further steps".

Berlin this month strongly criticised what it called Russian attempts to influence the September 26 election of a new parliament.

It pointed the finger at hackers from Russia's "Ghostwriter" group which reportedly specialises in spreading disinformation.

German intelligence believes they have been trying to gain access to the private email accounts of federal and regional MPs.

German federal prosecutors said they have opened "an investigation on suspicion of espionage" into the accusations.