A 19-year-old student from Hanover on the ARD TV channel said that if he had a choice, he would give preference to Russian President Vladimir Putin. This is reported by the German edition of Frankfurter Rundschau.
"A scandal on the ARD political show," FR comments on the incident.
The young man made his confession during the discussion of the introduction of universal military service in the country.
"I don't want to serve in the army. I would not go to defend Germany. If you have to choose between Germany fighting or being led by Putin, then I would choose Putin," said the young man, quoted by RIA Novosti.
He also added that the conflict with Russia has not brought any benefit to Ukraine.
The young man's statement discouraged the presenters and angered the audience, the presenters hurried to change the angle of the conversation, starting to prove the need for military reform, the newspaper notes.
As reported by EADaily, German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier supported the discussion of the return of universal conscription in the country in an interview with the newspaper Märkische Allgemeine Zeitung.
In recent months, German politicians have repeatedly called for the return of military service in Germany, but the government is still betting on increasing the attractiveness of service in the Bundeswehr under contract.