Security threatened

German minister: Russia provokes in the Baltic Sea

Boris Pistorius

(Bild: APA/dpa/Moritz Frankenberg)

According to German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius, Russia has been showing provocative behavior in the Baltic Sea for some time.

"We have repeatedly had incidents in the Baltic Sea that result in warning shots being fired into the air, warning shots being fired into the water," Pistorius expressed his concern on Deutschlandfunk radio on Thursday. The presence of the Russian navy and civilian ships is increasing significantly. The Chinese navy is also sometimes present.

This shows "the strategic importance of the Baltic Sea for many, especially for Russia and China, also in terms of circumventing sanctions", said the minister. Pistorius compared this behavior with incidents in the air in which Russian fighter jets took to the skies over the Baltic States without identification in order to test how NATO would react.

For us, one thing is clear: Russia is the greatest threat to our security and will remain so for the foreseeable future.

Boris Pistorius

Bild: AFP/John MACDOUGALL

No comment on incident with Russian ship
When asked, Pistorius did not comment on an incident between a German Armed Forces helicopter and a Russian ship that became known on Wednesday. According to dpa information, the crew of the Russian ship had fired signal ammunition. The use of this ammunition is actually only usual in emergency situations. Germany's Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock had pointed out that there are always ships in the Baltic Sea that are involved in circumventing sanctions due to the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine.

On the question of a possible escalation, Pistorius said that the German navy and the navy of the allies were behaving very prudently. "They register the incidents, they report them, they react with de-escalating measures and do not engage in any provocative behavior, because that is the last thing we need."

Kremlin Tsar Vladimir Putin is playing a nasty game.

(Bild: ASSOCIATED PRESS)

In a speech in the Bundestag on Thursday, the SPD politician warned of the growing military threat from Russia. "Russia has completely switched to a war economy and provides the army with 1,000 to 1,500 tanks every year. That's about twice as many as the five largest European countries combined have in their inventory," said Pistorius. "For us, one thing is certain: Russia is the greatest threat to our security, and it will remain so for the foreseeable future."

The outgoing German government submitted three bills to parliament. These include an article law, which is intended to pave the way for better remuneration for soldiers and civilian employees during the permanent stationing of a brigade in Lithuania. The law on the intergovernmental agreement concluded for this purpose was also submitted.

Work for foreign powers to be subject to approval
A third law is also intended to make it a punishable offense for former soldiers to work for a so-called foreign power - such as Russia or China - if this has not been approved in advance. "That hasn't been the case so far. The law is urgently needed," said Pistorius. "It will prevent highly specialized former members of the German armed forces from being recruited with lucrative offers for their own purposes."