The revelations by the Bild newspaper are highly explosive. They show that the German ruling class is involved at the highest level in the illegal war and torture practices conducted by the United States. Kneip is currently head of the department “Strategy and Deployment” at the Ministry of Defence and is one of the closest associates of Defense Minister Ursula von der Leyen (CDU). He is regarded as a candidate for the post of Inspector General of the Bundeswehr.