In a videoconference leaked by Russia, senior officials discussed the impact of Taurus missiles on the fighting and the provision of targeting data to Ukrainians. Moscow accuses the West of “hybrid warfare” and demands explanations.
(DW) In a videoconference leaked by Russia, senior officials discussed the impact of Taurus missiles on the fighting and the provision of targeting data to Ukrainians. Moscow accuses the West of “hybrid warfare” and demands explanations.
The German Defense Ministry confirmed on Saturday (02/03) the authenticity of the clandestine recording of a confidential conversation between senior Bundeswehr (German Armed Forces) officers about the war in Ukraine, leaked by Russian state media.
“According to our assessment, a conversation was intercepted in the Air Force. At the moment we can’t say for sure whether changes have been made to the recorded or written version circulating on social media,” said a spokeswoman for the ministry. On a visit to Rome, Germany’s Federal Chancellor, Olaf Scholz, described the matter as “very serious”, which “will now be investigated very carefully, intensively and quickly”.
The day before, Margarita Simonyan, director of the Russian state broadcaster RT, posted on the Telegram platform an alleged audio recording between four German officers, including the head of the Air Force, Lieutenant General Ingo Gerhartz. It seems that the recording was made during a videoconference. According to the German magazine Der Spiegel, the virtual meeting took place via the Webex platform, not a secure line.
Official sources have so far avoided talking about espionage. One of the subjects discussed is whether Taurus cruise missiles would be capable of destroying a bridge – an apparent allusion to the new link between the Crimean peninsula, under Russian occupation, and the territory of the invading country, across the Kerch Strait.
Senior officials also discuss how the German military could provide the Ukrainians with information about targets without appearing to be directly involved in the conflict with Russia. There is also reference to “on-site personnel” from the UK, in connection with the mobilization of Storm Shadow cruise missiles supplied by the country to Kiev.
“Proof of the West’s hybrid war”
Konstantin von Notz, chairman of the Bundestag (lower house of the German parliament), told the Redaktionsnetzwerk Deutschland news service: “If it turns out that this story is true, it would be a highly problematic incident.” The Green politician added that it is necessary to determine “whether this is an isolated incident or a structural security problem”.
Speaking to public broadcaster ZDF, the committee’s deputy chairman, Roderich Kiesewetter of the center-right Christian Democratic Union (CDU), said he believed Russia leaked the interaction to pressure Berlin not to supply the Taurus to Ukraine: “A number of other conversations will certainly have been intercepted and perhaps will be revealed later to benefit Russia,” he anticipated.
Scholz has so far refused to make the Taurus available for defense against the Russians. A few days ago, he argued that the range of the weapons and the likely need for assistance by Bundeswehr soldiers were problematic and could be interpreted as indirect participation in the war.
Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova demanded an “immediate” explanation from Germany, claiming that the audio was evidence of a “hybrid war” by the West against Russia.
Minister accuses Putin of information war against Germany
In the first official reaction to the leak by a Russian state broadcaster of sensitive information about Germany’s security, Defense Minister Boris Pistorius accused Moscow of waging an “information war” on Sunday (03/03).
Russian President Vladimir Putin is trying to “destabilize” Germany, Pristorius told the press. “The aim is clearly to undermine our unity […], to sow political division at home. I sincerely hope that Putin does not succeed and that we remain united.” The incident “is much more than just the interception and disclosure of a conversation, it is part of an information war that Putin is waging.”
On Friday, Margarita Simonyan, director of Russian state broadcaster RT, released a 38-minute audio on the Telegram platform in which four senior German officials, including the head of the Air Force, Lieutenant General Ingo Gerhartz, discussed the possibility of supplying long-range Taurus missiles to Ukraine, what would be needed to allow local forces to use them and their possible impact.
Embarrassment for Berlin
In the leaked audio, the officials consider whether the German-made Taurus missiles would be capable of destroying a bridge – an apparent allusion to the new link between the Crimean peninsula, under Russian occupation, and the territory of the invading country, across the Kerch Strait. They also discuss how to provide the Ukrainians with information on strategic targets without getting directly involved in the conflict with Russia.
The content of this confidential conversation is highly embarrassing for Germany, which officially refuses to supply the missiles to Kiev, fearing further involvement in the war in Ukraine. The officials also reveal details of how the UK and France are helping the Ukrainian Army to use the Storm Shadow and Scalp-EG cruise missiles, which both countries supplied to Kiev to fight the invader.
On Saturday, the German Defense Ministry confirmed the authenticity of the material. It seems that the recording was made during a videoconference which, according to the German magazine Der Spiegel, did not take place over a secure line, but via the Webex platform.
On a visit to Rome, Germany’s Federal Chancellor, Olaf Scholz, described the matter as “very serious”, promising that “it will now be investigated very carefully, intensively and quickly”.
For her part, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova demanded an “immediate” explanation from Berlin, claiming that the audio was evidence of a “hybrid war” by the West against Russia.
Isolated incident or structural security failure?
So far, the German authorities have avoided the term “espionage”. The Bundestag’s special commissioner for military affairs, Eva Högl, has called for senior military officers to undergo intensive training in secure communications.
The chairman of the Bundestag’s control group, Konstantin von Notz, commented that it was necessary to determine “whether this was an isolated incident or a structural security problem”. The committee’s deputy chairman, Roderich Kiesewetter, said he believed Russia had leaked the interaction in order to put pressure on Berlin not to supply the Taurus to Ukraine. And he anticipated: “A number of other conversations will certainly have been intercepted and perhaps will be revealed later to benefit Russia.”
So far, Scholz has refused to make the cruise missiles available for defense against the Russians. A few days ago, he argued that the range of the weapons and the likely need for assistance from Bundeswehr soldiers were problematic and could be interpreted as indirect participation in the war.
*** Translated by DEFCONPress FYI Team ***