Taurus bugging scandal

Anger and restraint in London over recording

Olaf Scholz will probably have to answer a few questions for his counterpart Rishi Sunak.

(Bild: AFP)

The British government has reacted cautiously to the apparently wiretapped conversation between German army officers about the Taurus cruise missile, which was published by Russia. While Prime Minister Rishi Sunak is trying to be diplomatic, other British politicians are taking the German head of government to task.

"This is obviously a matter for Germany to investigate and they have Chancellor Scholz's word on it," Sunak's spokesman told journalists on Monday.

Criticism of Olaf Scholz
Scholz had said that it was a very serious matter and was therefore now being investigated very carefully, the spokesman said. British politicians reacted more critically.

The conversation highlighted tensions between military officials who wanted to supply Taurus to Ukraine and Scholz, "who seems increasingly focused on his political survival rather than what is best for the continent," former chairman of the parliamentary defense committee, Conservative MP Tobias Ellwood, told BBC Radio 4.

We know that Germany is heavily penetrated by Russian intelligence services.

Ben Wallace

Bild: AFP

In contrast to the UK, however, where the prime minister consistently secures the support of public opinion, the conflict in Germany is seen as a war in Ukraine and not as part of a wider confrontation between Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin and the West.

Former Defense Secretary Ben Wallace told the Times newspaper: "We know that Germany is heavily penetrated by Russian intelligence services. That shows it is neither safe nor reliable."

Ex-military chief calls for consequences
Former army chief Richard Dannatt called on Times Radio for the German air force officers involved to be severely reprimanded. "They implied that there were Britons in Ukraine." But it was not their business to comment on the presence of British military personnel in Ukraine.