Germany has recalled a platoon from a Nato mission in Lithuania after reports emerged of troops engaging in racist and anti-Semitic behaviour, as well as sexual assault. The allegations were first published by Der Spiegel news magazine on Monday. Announcing the decision on Twitter, German Defence Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer said the misconduct would be “punished with all severity”. Four German soldiers were initially withdrawn as part of the investigation. The troops were in Lithuania as part of Nato’s “enhanced forward presence”, a mission which trains local soldiers as a deterrent against Russian in a number of Eastern European countries. “The misconduct of some soldiers in Lithuania is a slap in the face of everyone who works in the Bundeswehr [German army] day after day to serve the security of our country,” Ms Kramp-Karrenbauer tweeted on Wednesday. She said the entire platoon would be withdrawn with “immediate effect”, and that any necessary investigations and proceedings would take place in Germany. (BBC)…[+]