In Moscow, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova publicly asked her German counterpart, Annalena Berbach, for an explanation of the audio's content.
The German military is investigating a wiretap of a conversation between several high-ranking air force officers that was made public by the Russian press on Friday, raising alarm that it is not an isolated case.
“The Agency for the Military Defense Service (BAMAD) has taken all necessary measures,” a spokesman for the German Defense Ministry told the publication. 'T-online'.
According to sources in the weeklySpiegel', the ministry is alarmed by the possibility of eavesdropping on internal conversations within the armed forces, as the recorded conversation is genuine.
Russian state broadcaster RT (formerly “Russia Today”) released a 30-minute audio recording on Friday in which German Air Force chief Ingo Gerhardt reportedly spoke to several high-ranking officials about the possibility of a Taurus delivery. Missiles to Ukraine.
The interlocutors discuss the technical options to destroy the Kerch Bridge connecting the Crimean Peninsula to the mainland or Russian arsenals with these weapons, although they realize that there is no 'green light' to give it.
The release of the talks comes at a particularly critical time for President Olaf Scholes' government, which sparked controversy this week by saying Berlin could not hand over the “Taurus” to Ukraine, risking becoming a direct participant in the conflict.
Scholes argued that Kiev could not operate these systems without the help of German soldiers – a “red line” for Berlin – but audio released by RT contradicted this claim.
According to 'Spiegel' sources, the German Ministry of Defense believes the audio is authentic and not manipulated by artificial intelligence tools.
Apparently, this conversation – which took place on January 19, according to RT – was not conducted on a secure line, but rather via the WebEx video conferencing platform, while one of the participants was connected by cell phone.
“If this story is confirmed, it will be a very complicated event,” said Green Constantin van Notes, chairman of the Bundestag's (lower house of parliament) parliamentary control committee.
“The question is whether this is an isolated incident or a structural safety problem. I hope the issue will be clarified as soon as possible,” van Notes told RND on Friday.
In Moscow, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova publicly asked her German counterpart, Annalena Berbach, for an explanation of the audio's content.
Meanwhile, former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev drew parallels with World War II and said he could not “diplomatically” react to such a revelation, ending his message with a call for “death to the fascist German occupiers.”
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