BERLIN — On the day that Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny was laid to rest in Moscow, Russian state media leaked an audio recording of German military officers discussing the hypothetical use of Taurus long-range missiles in Ukraine.
The conversation on a sensitive subject was never meant to be public, and the leak embarrassed Germany and raised concerns about the security of its communications.
Furious with Germany, Moscow leveled threats in response.
“If nothing is done, and the German people do not stop this, then there will be dire consequences first and foremost for Germany itself,” Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova said Monday.
In her retort, German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said, “If Russia had not brutally attacked this country, Ukraine would not have to defend itself,” according to the dpa news agency.
In fact, the German officers discussed sending the Taurus missiles only in theory. Germany has not approved deploying the weapons despite months of pressure from Ukraine.
Here is a look at the fallout from what German media are calling the “wiretapping affair” and the Taurus missiles at the heart of the tensions.
WHAT ARE TAURUS MISSILES AND WHAT CAN THEY DO?
Equipped with stealth technology that makes them less visible to detection, the missiles have a range of up to 500 kilometers (310 miles), which would help Ukraine to put pressure on Russia in the Black Sea and…
