The Russian publication of a recording by German Air Force officers caused horror in Berlin. The central questions now are: How could this happen – and what follows from it?
After the scandal surrounding a conversation between German Air Force officers that was allegedly intercepted by Russia, the focus is on clarifying the circumstances and the possible consequences. Federal Defense Minister Boris Pistorius (SPD) said he expected the results of the audit of the military counterintelligence service in the first days of the new week. It is still unclear how Russia was able to gain access to the internal switch. Security politicians from Ampel and the Union have already called for better security precautions for sensitive communications.
The Union’s defense policy spokesman, Florian Hahn (CSU), told the “Augsburger Allgemeine” that “the question immediately arises about the standards, the equipment and the instructions in the ministry.”
The Green Party politician Anton Hofreiter told the “Rheinische Post”: “It shows bitterly that our counter-espionage defense has gaps.” The chairman of the Bundestag’s European Committee added: “It must be quickly clarified the extent of the interception operations by the Russian secret services. At the same time, we must expand our own capabilities to ward off espionage and disinformation.”
The FDP internal affairs expert Konstantin Kuhle told “Spiegel”: If it turns out that the Bundeswehr’s internal communication was compromised, “a general overhaul of the entire internal infrastructure for internal communication of security-relevant bodies in Germany will be required.”
“Part of an information war”
On Friday, Russia released a recorded conversation between senior officers in which they discussed operational scenarios for the German Taurus cruise missile if it were to be delivered to Ukraine. The German Ministry of Defense said: “According to our assessment, a conversation in the Air Force was intercepted. We cannot currently say with certainty whether changes were made to the recorded or written version that is circulating on social media.”
There is great concern that further security-relevant communications from German authorities could have been intercepted. At the weekend, Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) spoke of a “very serious matter”. Pistorius (SPD) viewed Russia’s publication of the internal conversation as a “hybrid disinformation attack.”
“It is part of an information war that Putin is waging,” said the SPD politician, referring to Russian President Vladimir Putin. Pistorius assured that he would quickly draw the appropriate conclusions after examining the incident.
Debate about Scholz’s no to Taurus delivery
The publication also reignites the debate about Chancellor Scholz’s rejection of the delivery of Taurus cruise missiles to Ukraine. The Union questions the credibility of his line of argument: it reads from the conversation between the Air Force officers that the participation of German soldiers in a Taurus mission through Ukraine is not technically absolutely necessary.
The Chancellor should “no longer throw smokescreens” on the Taurus issue, said CDU defense expert Roderich Kiesewetter to the “Rheinische Post”. “We must quickly change our goal of supporting Ukraine: It must not be the case that the law of the strongest applies, but rather the strength of the law must be enforced. That means: Ukraine must absolutely win this war.”
Left chairwoman Janine Wissler, however, sees the publication as a further argument not to deliver Taurus to Ukraine. “In terms of content, the discussions once again show very clearly that the delivery of Taurus cruise missiles would be extremely dangerous and possible attacks as far away as Moscow could trigger an unprecedented escalation spiral,” she told “Spiegel”.
“It is dangerous to equip the Bundeswehr with hundreds of billions if it is not even able to hold a video conference securely.”
Operational scenarios for the Taurus
In the switching conference, four officers, including Air Force Chief Ingo Gerhartz, discussed operational scenarios for the Taurus in preparation for a conversation with Pistorius. They come to the conclusion that rapid delivery and rapid deployment would only be possible with the participation of German soldiers – and that Taurus training of Ukrainian soldiers for a mission under their own direction would be possible, but would take months.
The possible destruction of the bridge built by Russia to the Ukrainian peninsula of Crimea, which was annexed in violation of international law, is also being discussed. However, it can also be heard in the recording that there is no green light at the political level for the delivery of the cruise missiles demanded by Kiev. Chancellor Scholz justified his rejection of a Taurus delivery by saying that Germany could then be drawn into the war.
Söder: Terrible week for Germany
CSU boss Markus Söder sees “a lot of need for discussion” after the events. “The whole thing was, between us, a terrible week for Germany,” said the Bavarian Prime Minister on the ARD program “Caren Miosga.” In addition to the wiretapping scandal, he referred to the “conflict between Germany and France, carried out on an open stage – I think to laughter in the Kremlin.”
The wiretapping scandal is likely to be a central topic at the regular government press conference today.
Source: Stern
I have been working in the news industry for over 6 years, first as a reporter and now as an editor. I have covered politics extensively, and my work has appeared in major newspapers and online news outlets around the world. In addition to my writing, I also contribute regularly to 24 Hours World.
