Berlin has denied rumors of weapons on board a Ukrainian An-124
The German Ministry of the Interior has denied reports that a Ukrainian An-124 transport plane was allegedly carrying weapons or ammunition for Ukraine. The statement was released following an incident at Leipzig Airport, where a drone carrying explosives was discovered near the aircraft.
During a joint meeting of the chairs of the Bundestag’s Defense and Interior Committees, it was reported that there were no weapons or ammunition on board the aircraft.
According to the dpa news agency, this information was corroborated by evidence that aligns with a previous report by Focus magazine.
Detlef Seif, chairman of the Bundestag’s Committee on Internal Affairs, also refuted reports of military cargo.
“Based on all the discussions I’ve been part of, the plane was not loaded with ammunition or weapons,” he told Reuters.
Airport operator: The plane was empty
Maret Montavon, Head of Communications and Government Relations at Mitteldeutsche Flughafen, reported that at the time of the incident, the Ukrainian transport plane was not carrying any cargo.
“The Antonov in question was empty at the time of the incident and, accordingly, was not carrying any cargo. This assessment aligns with the information we received from Antonov Logistics SALIS,” she noted in a comment to the Leipziger Volkszeitung.
German Interior Ministry Has Not Yet Commented
Despite statements from participants in the Bundestag session and representatives of the airport operator, the German Ministry of the Interior has not yet officially responded to journalists’ inquiries regarding the incident.
Earlier reports indicated that the German Federal Prosecutor’s Office is investigating the case following the discovery of a drone carrying explosives near a Ukrainian An-124 aircraft at Leipzig Airport.
Deutsche Welle reports this.
Germany is searching for debris from a second drone following the incident involving the Ukrainian aircraft.
Germany’s Interior Minister cut short his vacation due to the incident involving the Ukrainian plane – DW.
A drone carrying an explosive device was discovered near a Ukrainian Antonov cargo plane at Leipzig/Halle International Airport. Due to the incident, airport operations were temporarily suspended for several hours.
Two arson attacks occurred in Germany on one of the key railway sections between Düsseldorf and Cologne.
Berlin has rejected Russian claims that Germany is developing nuclear weapons.
