Since the big leak of the German officer's Taurus conversation, the German authorities have been trying to explain how it happened. The official position is that the intercept of the conversation happened in Singapore, not Berlin. There one of the call's participants, who was attending the Singapore Air Show (February 19 to February 25) returned to his hotel room late at night, after attending a party and, maybe having a few drinks, and around midnight connected to the discussion using Webex. The German statement said either it was caused by a cellular phone using the insecure hotel wifi, or it was caused by a cell phone internet connection on a cellular network.
There is another possibility for the source of the leak: someone in the German military who understands, or rightly fears, that slinging cruise missiles at Russian infrastructure is inviting retaliation which could escalate all the way up to nuclear exchange.
It could indicate a schism in the higher German ranks between the "Nuland" tendency and a more sane faction who would much prefer to de-escalate this.
Surely the most likely source of the leak is Scholz's own office.
It is evident that Scholz understands that the conflict with Russia is a disaster for Germany and that while the US is unconcerned with that collateral damage, no leader of Germany can be as cavalier.
Scholz is blocking the delivery of Taurus missiles to Ukraine because he knows that Russia will be infuriated if German missiles strike Russia only a generation after Russia allowed Germany to reunify.
Yet he is under enormous pressure from the US and some NATO members to allow just that.
Highlighting that reality by these leaked discussions helps raise public awareness of and resistance to this arms shipment within Germany while also underscoring Scholz's unwillingness to do so to the Russians.
The latter may not help much for now, but it may preserve a shred of hope that some peaceful settlement may remain possible.
The published audio recording starts between General Gräfe and a captain. The latter announces that he will now add the general to the Webex conference. The general's voice is "closer" than the captain's. So it seems highly likely that the interception was on Gräfe's side. And he was apparently the one who was in Singapore. So it seems pretty clear to me that the conversation was intercepted and recorded in Singapore.
Budanov getting desperate now - sending Denis Kapustin and other Russian Neonazi exiles across the border to 'disrupt Russian elections' with terrorist attacks.
That should really please his NATO backers, and harm Putin's chances of re-election!
I follow the German news and the saddest part is that most Mainstream media outlets reacted furiously about the leak. But it wasn't the conversation about the potential escalation of the war into WW3 that made them upset, but the fact that Russia is spying on Germany.
Germany abolishes itself and with it the entire West. The role of our media in this conflict has been nothing but sad.
How many people knew beforehand that a German officer in Singapore would be joining an online discussion at a certain time about getting around Schulz' reluctance to send Taurus to Ukraine?
Either someone or some hostile equivalent to Five Eyes has a very wide net listening to a very broad spectrum of internal German communications in the hope they, or rather their automated filtering software, picks up something interesting or... something else was going on.
I like the hypothesis that this was a Chinese intercept in Singapore. There must be all kinds of in a quasi-Western outpost in Asia.
It could be the Russians, of course, but if they have this capability, for obvious reasons, they would have needed to think VERY carefully whether to reveal it. Would they be willing to endanger or possibly lose a pawn to possibly take down a valuable piece on the board. Was this it?
Is there a Deep State within Germany? Maybe some of them leaked it to sabotage any ideas about giving missiles to Ukraine because the Russians would eventually find out the origin of the missiles and might be inclined to direct a few nukes at German cities.
There is another possibility for the source of the leak: someone in the German military who understands, or rightly fears, that slinging cruise missiles at Russian infrastructure is inviting retaliation which could escalate all the way up to nuclear exchange.
It could indicate a schism in the higher German ranks between the "Nuland" tendency and a more sane faction who would much prefer to de-escalate this.
Surely the most likely source of the leak is Scholz's own office.
It is evident that Scholz understands that the conflict with Russia is a disaster for Germany and that while the US is unconcerned with that collateral damage, no leader of Germany can be as cavalier.
Scholz is blocking the delivery of Taurus missiles to Ukraine because he knows that Russia will be infuriated if German missiles strike Russia only a generation after Russia allowed Germany to reunify.
Yet he is under enormous pressure from the US and some NATO members to allow just that.
Highlighting that reality by these leaked discussions helps raise public awareness of and resistance to this arms shipment within Germany while also underscoring Scholz's unwillingness to do so to the Russians.
The latter may not help much for now, but it may preserve a shred of hope that some peaceful settlement may remain possible.
Considering that Nuland was just ejected, it is most likely the US that leaked the conversation.
The published audio recording starts between General Gräfe and a captain. The latter announces that he will now add the general to the Webex conference. The general's voice is "closer" than the captain's. So it seems highly likely that the interception was on Gräfe's side. And he was apparently the one who was in Singapore. So it seems pretty clear to me that the conversation was intercepted and recorded in Singapore.
To me, how the communications were compromised is much less interesting than why the Russians leaked it at this particular moment.
Budanov getting desperate now - sending Denis Kapustin and other Russian Neonazi exiles across the border to 'disrupt Russian elections' with terrorist attacks.
That should really please his NATO backers, and harm Putin's chances of re-election!
I follow the German news and the saddest part is that most Mainstream media outlets reacted furiously about the leak. But it wasn't the conversation about the potential escalation of the war into WW3 that made them upset, but the fact that Russia is spying on Germany.
Germany abolishes itself and with it the entire West. The role of our media in this conflict has been nothing but sad.
Zelensky may blame the Pope.
How many people knew beforehand that a German officer in Singapore would be joining an online discussion at a certain time about getting around Schulz' reluctance to send Taurus to Ukraine?
Either someone or some hostile equivalent to Five Eyes has a very wide net listening to a very broad spectrum of internal German communications in the hope they, or rather their automated filtering software, picks up something interesting or... something else was going on.
I like the hypothesis that this was a Chinese intercept in Singapore. There must be all kinds of in a quasi-Western outpost in Asia.
It could be the Russians, of course, but if they have this capability, for obvious reasons, they would have needed to think VERY carefully whether to reveal it. Would they be willing to endanger or possibly lose a pawn to possibly take down a valuable piece on the board. Was this it?
Is there a Deep State within Germany? Maybe some of them leaked it to sabotage any ideas about giving missiles to Ukraine because the Russians would eventually find out the origin of the missiles and might be inclined to direct a few nukes at German cities.