German chancellor visits Special Forces Command amid tensions with Russia

BERLIN

Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Tuesday visited the German Special Forces Command, and underlined that the country should further strengthen its armed forces to address today’s security challenges.

“We have to do more for our national defense, we have to further improve cooperation in NATO, so that we can ensure that no one attacks our country, our alliance territory,” he said in a short statement.

“That means that we have to change a lot of things, and of course we also have to ensure that what is being done in the German armed forces (Bundeswehr), and the excellent work here can be done under good conditions,” he said.

Scholz’s visit to the headquarters of the Special Forces Command came at a time of heightened tensions between Berlin and Moscow over Germany’s military support for Ukraine.

Moscow accused Germany of “preparing for war against Russia” after a leaked audio recording revealed that senior German military officers recently discussed the possible delivery of long-range Taurus missiles to Ukraine, and their potential use to destroy the Kerch Bridge connecting Crimea to Russia.

During his visit to the Special Forces Command headquarters, Chancellor Scholz did not did not take questions from journalists on the latest wiretapping scandal.

On Sunday, German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius accused Russia of carrying out a “hybrid attack” against Germany, and said Moscow’s interception of the military meeting, followed by a “disinformation campaign,” aimed at creating divisions, undermining unity in the country.