The World Briefly
March 05, 2024Careless Whispers
Germany
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Germany on Monday scrambled to respond to the reactions of its allies – and Russia – to a leaked recording involving top officers in the German army discussing the Ukraine war – a severe security breach that followed a display of disagreement among Western nations over military support to Ukraine, the Guardian reported.
In a call two weeks ago, the head of Germany’s air force, Ingo Gerhartz, suggested the use of German Taurus missiles to destroy the Kerch Bridge that connects mainland Russia with the occupied Crimean peninsula. He and his officers then discussed the participation of German troops to train Ukrainians to deploy the missiles, the Associated Press reported.
The 38-minute recording of the conversation was released on Friday by the editor of Russian state media channel Russia Today, and declared authentic by German authorities.
It also featured information about British troops being “on the ground” in Ukraine to help fire long-range Storm Shadow missiles up to 150 miles into Russian territory.
This detail twisted the knife in the wound after NATO allies last week showed division over comments by French President Emmanuel Macron that sending Western troops to Ukraine could not be ruled out. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz was among the leaders who rushed to oppose Macron’s statement.
Scholz had surprisingly added that he would not provide Taurus missiles to Ukraine, saying that such a move would make Germany “a participant in the war.”
Asked to react to the leak on Monday, he reiterated his stance on the missiles, while his government promised an inquiry into the interception of the call.
Former British defense ministers expressed frustration at the leak, which the Sydney Morning Herald called one of Germany’s worst security breaches since the Cold War. The leaked call was hosted on the relatively insecure platform Webex, the Guardian noted.
Meanwhile, Russian officials described the leak as proof that Germany was preparing for war against Russia – a claim rejected by Berlin, Politico wrote. The Kremlin said it summoned the German ambassador to Moscow on Monday.
Nonetheless, one analyst told the outlet that the recording would only be a propaganda tool for Russia to use in order to destabilize the German government.
Tobias Ellwood, a former junior defense minister in the United Kingdom, suggested that Moscow was probably already aware of the British presence in Ukraine through intelligence.
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