Germany demands to clarify the situation with the possible "leak" of their generals' conversations with Russia

The Bundestag has demanded clarifications from the German Ministry of Defense regarding reports that Russia allegedly intercepted talks between representatives of the German Air Force. This refers to a 30-minute audio recording released by Russian propagandists, in which allegedly high-ranking German military officials discuss the theoretical possibility of deploying German Taurus missiles in Ukraine and their ability to hit the Crimean bridge.

German lawmakers are now wondering whether, if the conversation is genuine, such leaks are one-offs or a systemic phenomenon. Tagesschau writes about this.

The chairman of the Bundestag's Parliamentary Control Committee, Konstantin von Notz, called on MPs to provide explanations about the incident with Russia's possible interception of negotiations between representatives of the German Air Force. He is primarily interested in how deeply (and if at all) the Russians managed to penetrate the communications of the German army.

"If this story turns out to be true, it will be a very problematic process. The question arises whether this is a one-time event or a structural security problem. I expect that all preliminary information will be immediately clarified," the politician said.

On March 1, a representative of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Maria Zakharova, accused Germany of planning to deploy Taurus missiles in Ukraine and destroy the illegal Crimean bridge built by the occupiers to the Ukrainian peninsula they seized in 2014.

In a boorish manner typical of Russian "diplomacy," she accused Berlin of "plans to conduct hostilities against Russia, including the destruction of civilian infrastructure," and demanded immediate explanations.

"We demand explanations from Germany. Official Berlin is obliged to provide them promptly. Attempts to avoid answering questions will be considered an admission of guilt," Zakharova wrote.

She attached a link to the Telegram channel of Russian propagandist Margarita Simonyan to her post. She also posted an audio recording lasting about 30 minutes. The propagandist did not explain where she got the audio from or how she could confirm its authenticity. At the same time, she stated that the audio is an alleged conversation that took place on February 19 between German Air Force Inspector Ingo Gerhartz, Head of Operations and Training Frank Greffe, and employees of the Space Command Air Operations Center named Fenske and Frostedte.

The German Defense Ministry has responded to Russia's loud statements. According to DW, they have begun to check the possibility of interception of communications and wiretapping in the Air Force.

"The Federal Office of Military Counterintelligence (BAMAD) has taken all necessary measures," a ministry spokesman said on Friday, March 1.

Meanwhile, Roderich Kiesewetter, deputy chairman of the Bundestag's intelligence oversight committee, suggested that the Russians could indeed have intercepted the German military's conversations.

"Russia is certainly demonstrating how actively it is using espionage and sabotage as part of its hybrid warfare. It is to be expected that there were many more intercepts and leaks to influence decisions, discredit and manipulate people," he told Handelsblatt.

Earlier this week, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz gave a new excuse for why Germany is not giving Ukraine Taurus. According to him, if used incorrectly, missiles with a range of 500 kilometers can reach Moscow. According to him, Germany is not ready to send its military to Ukraine to monitor the use of German missiles.

Meanwhile, the Russian Federation has begun to fuss about the "interception" of German officers' conversations. They were allegedly instructed by German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius to work out the Taurus delivery, while Scholz "blocks these deliveries." The audio suggests that Ukraine will receive 100 such missiles in two tranches.

The people whose voices were recorded also discuss the hypothetical destruction of the Crimean bridge, which they say is "hard to get" and would require "not ten or even twenty missiles." If the French fighter jet Dassault Rafale is equipped with German Taurus missiles, it will be possible to destroy the illegal structure of the occupiers.

At the same time, the thesis is voiced that if Taurus is transferred to Kyiv, the missiles "will be ready for use only in eight months" because it is necessary to exclude the possibility of "mistaken use."

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