Germany accuses Russia of seeking to 'destabilise' with leaks
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During a special announcement, Pistorius expressed that he was not aware of any further leaks and expects the results to surface within the "first few days of next week."
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German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius addresses the media during a press statement in Berlin, Germany on March 3, 2024 (AP)
After German Chancellor Olaf Scholz announced an investigation into what looked to be a recording of classified army meetings leaked and then broadcasted on Russian social media, Boris Pistorius, the German Defense Minister stated Sunday that preliminary results should be underway by next week.
During a special announcement, Pistorius expressed that he was not aware of any further leaks and remarked that final results were not yet available. "I expect them to appear within the first few days of next week."
The German Bundeswehr was planning to destroy the Crimean Bridge, the same one Ukraine admitted to bombing, with possible involvement from US and British troops - or so claims the editor-in-chief of Russia Today, Margarita Simonyan, citing a nearly 40-minute leaked audio she says she possesses.
The leak, which is 38 minutes long and dated February 19, reveals officers discussing the operational and targeting details of the homegrown Taurus long-range missiles, which Germany was mulling sending to Ukraine. Interestingly, the way it was being discussed insinuated that it had already been agreed upon.
The officers were also discussing means of maintaining plausible deniability so that Germany could tread as closely as possible to the "red line" of direct involvement without crossing it.
Vowing continued aid to Ukraine, Pistorius accused Russia of undertaking an "information war" explaining that this was intended to "reinforce the legend, the fairy tale that we are working on a war against Russia, which is completely absurd."
The German Defense Minister stated that the senior German commanders' conversation does not indicate a "green light" for the shipment of Taurus cruise missiles to Ukraine.
"The officers were doing what they were here to do: they were thinking about different scenarios, without making plans in any way. There should be no doubt: this did not and does not mean a green light for the use of Taurus missiles — neither from [German] Chancellor [Olaf Scholz] nor from me," Pistorius said.
Leaked German recording could deepen NATO rift: WSJ
According to The Wall Street Journal, the leaked German recording might provoke an internal dispute between Berlin and its NATO partners.
One WSJ source expressed that the leak should serve as a "Wake-up call" for Berlin.
Aside from the employment of Taurus missiles, German authorities purportedly acknowledged the presence of foreign military personnel in Ukraine, who were there to assist Kiev in operating weaponry supplied by Western nations. Russian officials have stated that the presence of Western service members in Ukraine is "no secret."
The WSJ called the tape "a propaganda win for the Kremlin," warning that it might strain relations between Germany and other NATO members. According to the report, this also reduces the likelihood of Taurus missiles being sent to Ukraine.
According to reports, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz is still opposed to supplying Taurus missiles to Kiev, warning that doing so may intensify the crisis.
Ever since the beginning of the war in Ukraine in February 2022, Germany has aided Ukraine with Leopard tanks and IRIS-T air defense systems, while Britain and France provided the country with Storm Shadow and Scalp cruise missiles.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov expressed that the leak is proof Ukraine and its supporters "do not want to change their course at all, and want to inflict a strategic defeat on Russia on the battlefield."
Maria Zakharova, the Foreign Ministry Spokesperson, remarked that if Germany did not "promptly" provide an explanation for the talks, this would be considered "an admission of guilt."
Former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev wrote on Telegram that the Germans have "again turned into our sworn enemies."
