In a wild Bundestag debate, Chancellor Scholz reiterated his rejection of the delivery of Taurus cruise missiles to Ukraine. According to t-online research, there could be a special reason for this that is not yet publicly known.
It was probably the most impressive scene in this week’s Taurus debate in the Bundestag: Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD), visibly touched, personally addressed CDU foreign politician Norbert Röttgen after he asked a question about the delivery of Taurus cruise missiles to Ukraine .
“But what annoys me, dear MP, dear Norbert, is that you know everything and engage in public communication that is based on the fact that your knowledge is not public knowledge. I believe that should not be the case in a democracy,” said Scholz to Röttgen.
It wasn’t just those present and viewers of the live stream online who asked themselves what the Chancellor could have meant. The country has been discussing the transfer of German precision missiles to Ukraine for over nine months. The Chancellor remained silent on the issue for a long time until he recently publicly presented reasons for why he had decided not to deliver the Taurus.
What secret knowledge does the Chancellor mean?
Essentially, Scholz is concerned with maintaining control over the targeting of the cruise missile, which can fly over 500 kilometers and thus – theoretically – all the way to Moscow. In order to maintain control, the participation of German soldiers would be necessary, which is why delivery of the Taurus was ruled out. “That is a limit that I do not want to cross as Chancellor,” Scholz reiterated his no on Wednesday.
Scholz was accused of not trusting Ukraine. The next day, in an ARD interview, Röttgen denied having any “special knowledge” and accused the Chancellor of using fear “as a means and instrument of his enforcement.”
But the reference to control by Germany is apparently only part of the truth. According to information from t-online, there is another important factor that plays a role in the Chancellor’s Taurus no. By accusing Röttgen of possessing some kind of secret knowledge, Scholz himself hinted at what it could be. It is about classified information that was made available for the first time to the Defense Committee of the Bundestag, of which Röttgen, as a member of the Foreign Affairs Committee, is not a member.
“Have doubts for the first time”
According to t-online information, something crucial happened in the special meeting of the Defense Committee on Monday. In the first part, the committee members first questioned Federal Defense Minister Boris Pistorius, who had been summoned, about the Air Force’s wiretapping affair. A second, secret part was about Taurus, where sensitive details about the cruise missile were shared with members of a Bundestag specialist committee for the first time.
The Inspector General of the Bundeswehr, Carsten Breuer, who was also invited, gave a 20-minute presentation on the most important facts about the Taurus: In addition to operational capability and number (according to estimates, the Air Force has around 600 Taurus), Breuer should also be aware of the particular risks of a delivery for security interests of Germany have spoken.
A person familiar with the process tells t-online that some MPs’ jaws dropped. “After Breuer’s lecture, there was silence in the room. Even those who usually make loud demands no longer had any questions.” A committee member and Taurus supporter told t-online after the meeting that he had “had doubts for the first time” and wanted to reconsider his position on a delivery.
Target programming more complicated than known
Something of this can also be felt in the interview that the defense policy spokesman for the CDU/CSU, Florian Hahn, gave after the ARD meeting. Hahn, who likes to urge the Chancellor on the Taurus issue with strong words, speaks calmly, differentiatedly, almost as if he had to rearrange his thoughts.
The inspector general apparently informed MPs in detail that the use of the Taurus was more complicated than many previously assumed. In order to use the cruise missile sensibly, enormous amounts of data are necessary.
