The interception, apparently originating from Russia, of German army officers discussing the transfer of long-range air-to-ground missiles to Urkania and possible targets has caused intense concern in Germany.
This is audio only from a video conference posted on social media by the head of the Russian state channel RT.
Как и обещала, публикую аудио разговора офицеров бундесвера, обсуждающих, как они будут бомбить Крымский мост.
Продолжение тутhttps://t.co/ollzdW97uk
— Маргарита Симоньян (@M_Simonyan) March 1, 2024
The 38-minute-long audio was posted on social media on Friday by Russia Today chief Margarita Simonian, who said it was proof that Germany was planning strikes in Crimea.
The audio includes discussions about the possible use by Ukrainian forces of German-made Taurus missiles and their possible consequences.
Air Force officers, the BBC reports, are discussing how the missiles could hit the Kerch Bridge, which connects Russia to Russian-occupied Crimea.
According to Der Spiegel magazine, the conference call was not held on an encrypted internal military network, but on the WebEx platform, so the connection was far from secure.
A spokeswoman for the German Defense Ministry confirmed that it was a conversation between Air Force officers, however, she said she was “unable to say with certainty” whether the voices had been altered before publication.
For his part, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz called the leak “a very serious matter and therefore it is now being investigated very carefully, very intensively and very quickly.”
Moscow expressed its anger, with Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova demanding that Germany immediately provide an explanation. “Attempts to avoid answering questions will be seen as an admission of guilt,” she said.
In high tones was the comment of former president and deputy head of the Security Council , Dmitry Medvedev, who wrote on Telegram that “Our age-old rivals – the Germans – have once again turned into our sworn enemies.”
Ukraine has asked Germany to provide it with Taurus missiles, which have a range of up to 500 kilometers. However, the Solts government has so far refused, fearing that this would lead to an escalation of the conflict.
France and Britain have supplied Kiev with Scalp missiles, which have half the range of the German ones.
