Germany dismisses Russia’s claim it is preparing attack as ‘absurd propaganda’

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Germany has rejected a claim by Moscow that it is planning attacks on Russian territory, calling it “absurd propaganda”.

Russia made the claim after Kremlin-controlled media published a recording in which senior German air force personnel appeared to discuss how the country’s long-range Taurus missiles could be used by Kyiv against Russian forces.

Wolfgang Büchner, deputy government spokesman, said: “Claims that the conversation proves Germany is preparing war against Russia is absurd, infamous Russian propaganda.”

The intercept has caused a political storm in Germany, raising deep concern about the security of government communications.

It has also reignited a row over whether Berlin should give Tauruses to Kyiv, which has experienced a string of setbacks on the battlefield in recent months amid shortages of western arms and stalled US aid.

Dmitry Peskov, President Vladimir Putin’s spokesman, told reporters the call made it “more than obvious” that Germany’s military was “discussing substantive and specific plans to strike Russian territory”.

He added that the leak “confirms once again that the countries of the collective west are being drawn into the conflict around Ukraine”.

The leak included a discussion about whether Ukraine could deploy the Tauruses without the involvement of German soldiers and how long Ukrainian servicemen would need to be trained to use them.

The officials — seemingly taking part in a virtual meeting — also appeared to talk about a potential strike by Ukrainian forces on a bridge linking mainland Russia to Crimea, Ukraine’s Russian-occupied peninsula.

Chancellor Olaf Scholz has ruled out the delivery of Tauruses, fearing it would lead to Germany becoming directly involved in the war.

He said late last month that deploying the missiles in Ukraine would require German “boots on the ground”, with…