Because of the Taurus wiretapping affair
Traffic light and Union politicians are putting Pistorius under pressure
March 11, 2024, 5:32 a.m
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Federal Defense Minister Pistorius has to answer questions from MPs about the Taurus wiretapping scandal in the Defense Committee. The representatives of the Union faction see one aspect in particular confirmed by the leak.
Federal Defense Minister Boris Pistorius is coming under increasing pressure to clear up the Taurus wiretapping scandal. At a special meeting of the Defense Committee in the Bundestag, members of the opposition CDU/CSU parliamentary group, as well as the traffic light parties, expect the minister to provide information on numerous outstanding questions.
“The special session must shed light on the contradiction of the statements made by the Federal Chancellor and the Air Force inspector on the conditions for Taurus deliveries to Ukraine,” said Henning Otte, deputy chairman of the Defense Committee, to “Spiegel”. When asked, Florian Hahn, defense policy spokesman for the Union, emphasized: “I expect clarification about the flow of information and the decision-making process between the Air Force, Pistorius and the Chancellor.” The Union sees the recording as confirmation of its view that the Taurus cruise missile could be used in Ukraine without the involvement of the Bundeswehr.
The SPD defense politician Joe Weingarten also sees an urgent need for clarification: “The behavior of the Air Force officers was unprofessional,” he told “Spiegel”. It’s not just the security deficiencies that are blatant. “I also think it’s highly problematic how the Air Force leadership is chatting about a central security policy issue in a careless casino tone,” he criticizes. On an issue as sensitive as the delivery of German cruise missiles to the Ukrainian war zone, “much more professional planning and decision-making processes” are necessary. According to Weingarten, he hopes “that the Federal Defense Minister will straighten things out again at the meeting.”
Pistorius had commissioned the Military Counterintelligence Service to investigate the leak. “We primarily want to know what came out of the analysis,” said Alexander Müller, chairman of the FDP on the Defense Committee. “Was the classification level assessed correctly? Was it careless use of the technology? How do you ensure that it can’t happen again?” Green defense politician Sara Nanni wants to once again raise the question of Taurus deliveries to Ukraine. “Contrary to what the Chancellor would like, this debate is not over for me.”