 "German officer used insecure Singapore line for military call. Then Russia hacked it")
Germany is in a predicament after a phone call among its senior military officials was leaked by Russian state media last week. The leaked audio tape reportedly features four high-ranking German Air Force officers discussing top-secret information about the Russia-Ukraine war and other important military issues.
According to Germany’s defence minister, the leak was caused by “individual error”. Defence minister Boris Pistorius said Tuesday (5 March) that this was an isolated incident. “Our communication systems were not compromised,” Politico quoted him as saying.
What did the leaked audio tape reveal? What has Germany found? What have been the reactions to the incident? Let’s take a closer look.
What was discussed by German military officers?
The top military officers, including the chief of the Air Force, or Luftwaffe, Lieutenant General Ingo Gerhartz, talked about hypothetically deploying German Taurus long-range cruise missiles to Ukraine.
In the 38-minute call, Lt Gen Gerhartz and three other officers discussed a potential strike by Kyiv on a key bridge over the Kerch Strait that links Russia to the illegally annexed Crimean Peninsula, reported The Washington Post.
According to Politico, the officers also conversed about how the British and French were providing cruise missiles to Ukraine. They also suggested that a “few” British troops are on the ground in Ukraine.
Impact Shorts
More ShortsThe call that was part of preparations for a meeting with Pistorius took place a fortnight back. It was published by Russia’s state-run media outlet Russia Today on the day of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny’s funeral in Moscow on 1 March, noted BBC.
There is an ongoing debate in Germany over sending Taurus cruise missiles to Ukraine, with Chancellor Olaf Scholz publicly rejecting Kyiv’s demand for the “very far-reaching weapon”. He argued that the 500km range of the missiles meant they could be deployed to target Russia, thus dragging Germany directly into the Ukraine war.
What is Germany saying?
Germany’s defence minister Pistorius said earlier this week that the conference call was held over the widely used platform WebEx. One of the participants dialled into the call using either his mobile phone or the hotel’s Wi-fi in Singapore.
While Germany did not identify the individual, the officer in question is believed to be Brigadier General Frank Gräfe who was in the city-state to attend the Singapore Airshow held between 20-25 February that attracted high-ranking military officials from across Europe.
Pistorius said such events were infamous for luring spies and were like a “laid out banquet” for Russian intelligence services, reported The Guardian.
The defence minister further said the military official in Singapore may have broken security protocol by using a non-secure line to join the highly sensitive conference call.
Two weeks after the call, the audio tape was leaked by Margarita Simonyan, editor-in-chief of RT Today.
While Germany has not questioned the authenticity of the leaked recording, it believes the call was intercepted by Russian spies, according to BBC.
“Our communication systems were not compromised. An event like this in this environment is understandably a find for the Russian secret services. And targeted wiretapping operations take place in the hotels used,” Pistorius said in Berlin, as per The Washington Post.
He said it must be “assumed that the access to this [phone] conference was a chance hit as part of a broad, scattered approach,” reported Associated Press (AP).
The incident has brought widespread criticism and embarrassment to Germany.
Trying to downplay the leak, Pistorius asserted that Germany still holds the trust of its allies. “Trust in Germany is unbroken. Everyone knows about the danger of such wiretapping attacks and knows that no one can offer 100 per cent protection,” he added.
The German defence minister also accused Russia of trying to “drive a wedge” between European and US allies.
He did not discuss the contents of the leaked phone call, saying that would be “letting Putin set the agenda” – a reference to Russian president Vladimir Putin, reported The Guardian.
Pistorius said an investigation is underway and Germany has enhanced overall security. The defence minister said that preliminary disciplinary proceedings were being mulled, but harsh personal actions were unlikely, as per AP. He added that if nothing came up in the probe, then he would “not sacrifice any of my best officers to Putin’s games”.
Reactions to the Taurus call leak
Moscow has viewed the leaked conversation as Germany’s plan to attack Russia. As per The Washington Post, Dmitry Medvedev, the deputy head of Russia’s Security Council, said in his initial response that Russia’s “age-old rivals — the Germans — have again turned into our sworn enemies.”
Later, he reportedly said in a Telegram post, “Germany is preparing for war with Russia.”
Reacting to the incident, Germany’s ambassador to the UK, Miguel Berger, told BBC this week, “I think that’s a good lesson for everybody: never use hotel internet if you want to do a secure call”.
White House national security spokesperson John Kirby dubbed the leak an “attempt by the Russians to try to sow discord and to try to show division” among Ukraine and its allies.
“We’re all working together to try to support Ukraine, and the Germans have been right there in it. Every nation has to decide for itself what it’s going to do, and the Germans have stepped up. They’ve stepped up in meaningful ways," Kirby was quoted as saying by The Washington Post.
After the United States, Germany is the second-biggest supplier of military assistance to Ukraine, which it plans to further increase this year.
With inputs from agencies
 "Russian drones over Poland: Trump’s tepid reaction a wake-up call for Nato?")
 "As Russia pushes east, Ukraine faces mounting pressure to defend its heartland")
 "Why Mossad was not on board with Israel’s strike on Hamas in Qatar")
 "Turkey: Erdogan's police arrest opposition mayor Hasan Mutlu, dozens officials in corruption probe")
 "Russian drones over Poland: Trump’s tepid reaction a wake-up call for Nato?")
 "As Russia pushes east, Ukraine faces mounting pressure to defend its heartland")
 "Why Mossad was not on board with Israel’s strike on Hamas in Qatar")
 "Turkey: Erdogan's police arrest opposition mayor Hasan Mutlu, dozens officials in corruption probe")
