NEW DELHI: Germany on Tuesday attempted to minimize the impact of a leaked audio recording featuring senior military personnel discussing the Ukraine conflict, attributing it to “individual error“.
Berlin emphasized ongoing trust with allies despite the incident.
The 38-minute recording, where officers debated Ukraine’s potential use of German-made Taurus missiles, surfaced on Russian social media late Friday.
“A serious mistake happened here that should not have happened,” Defence Minister Boris Pistorius told a press conference.
The initial results of a probe showed the German army’s “communications systems are not and were not compromised”, the minister said.
“The reason the phone call could still be recorded… is due to an individual user error,” he said.
One of the participants, who was attending the Singapore Airshow, had dialled into the meeting via an “unauthorised connection” leading to the intercept, Pistorius said.
The presence of numerous senior military officials from various nations at the event would have provided ample opportunities for Russian intelligence, he said.
He highlighted the likelihood of widespread wiretapping targeting the hotels accommodating attendees. The interception of the German military call, he asserted, was merely a coincidental result within a broader surveillance strategy.

Regarding the leak, he mentioned that there are currently no plans for personal repercussions.
“I will not sacrifice my best officers to (Russian President Vladimir) Putin’s game.”
“Everyone knows about the danger of such wiretapping attacks and knows that no one can offer 100 percent protection.”
Germany faces mounting pressure to dispatch Taurus missiles to Ukraine in alignment with similar actions by France and Britain, responding to urgent appeals from Kyiv.
However, Chancellor Olaf Scholz has opted against authorizing the shipments, apprehensive that such actions might entangle Germany in the conflict.