Germany’s defense minister said on Sunday that Russia is waging an “information war” aimed at creating divisions in Germany, the first reaction to the appearance in Russia of an audio recording of a meeting of high-ranking German military officials discussing the war in Ukraine, Reuters reports.
Russian media on Friday released a 38-minute recording of a conversation between German officers discussing weapons for Ukraine and a possible Kyiv attack on the Crimean bridge, prompting Russian officials to demand an explanation.
On Saturday, Germany called it an apparent act of wiretapping and said it was investigating.
Defense Minister Boris Pistorius talks about information warfare to create a division
“The incident is much more than the interception and publication of a conversation … This is part of the information war being waged by (Russian President Vladimir) Putin,” Defense Minister Boris Pistorius said on Sunday.
“This is a hybrid disinformation attack. It is about a split. It’s about undermining our unity.”
The Kremlin has repeatedly denied accusations of spreading false or misleading information, facing accusations from other countries.
A representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry said on social media on Friday: “We demand an explanation from Germany,” without specifying his specific problems.
The Russian Embassy in Berlin did not respond to an emailed request for comment.
What a disgraceful position Germany is in after the leak of the conversation
The participants of the conversation are discussing the possible supply of Taurus cruise missiles to Kyiv, which Chancellor Olaf Scholz has so far categorically denied in public. It is also about the training of the Ukrainian military and possible military goals.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov told reporters on Saturday about the “insidious plans of the Bundeswehr (German armed forces), which became apparent thanks to the release of this audio recording. This is a frank self-revelation.”
Former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, now deputy chairman of Russia’s Security Council, said on Sunday that the tape showed Berlin was preparing to go to war with Moscow.
The discussion between the officials reportedly took place on the public WebEx platform
According to Spiegel, the discussion between German officers originated from a video conference on the public WebEx platform and not from the army’s internal secret network, raising questions about internal security regulations in the Bundeswehr.
A German defense ministry spokeswoman confirmed on Saturday that a secret air force conversation was intercepted after an alleged recording of officers discussing classified material relating to the war in Ukraine was released on social media.
“Based on our assessment, a conversation in the Air Force Division was intercepted. We cannot say with certainty whether changes have been made to the recorded or transcribed version shared on social media,” an AFP spokesperson said.
The Defense Ministry’s confirmation came shortly after German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Saturday promised a “very thorough” investigation into the case.
“This is a very serious matter, and that is why it is now the subject of a very thorough, very thorough and very quick investigation,” Scholz said during a visit to Rome after Russia Today chief Margarita Simonian posted what appeared to be a social media post. to be a recording of a conversation between high-ranking German officers, AFP reports.
Source: Hot News
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