April 10, 2023 5:35 PM
Top Pentagon Spokesperson Deems Apparent Leak of Highly Classified U.S. Documents on Ukraine War a "Very Serious" National Security Risk.
The apparent breach contains sensitive information regarding Russia's involvement in the conflict in Ukraine and the United States' allies. The Justice Department has launched an investigation following the leak of the documents, which have been circulating on various social media platforms.
The spread of disinformation is a potential consequence of the leak, warns Chris Meagher, assistant to the secretary of defense for public affairs. Meagher revealed in a press conference on Monday that the incident is still under investigation, and steps are being taken to assess how the information was distributed and to whom.
The scale of the issue is yet to be fully determined, and the Pentagon is working to prevent further breaches of this nature from occurring in the future.
Pentagon Voices Concerns over Altered Images and Understated Russian Battlefield Casualties in Leaked Classified Documents.
The leaked highly classified documents containing sensitive information about Russia's involvement in the war in Ukraine, and the United States' allies, were similar in format to those used to update senior leaders. However, some of the images appear to have been altered to understate Russian battlefield casualties, according to Chris Meagher, assistant to the secretary of defense for public affairs.
U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin was briefed on the issue on April 6, the same day The New York Times published a story about the documents. The classified documents initially emerged on Discord in late February before spreading to other social media platforms such as Telegram and Twitter.
The National Security Council spokesman, John Kirby, expressed concern over the leak and admitted that there were many unanswered questions about it. The White House is still uncertain about the identity and motive of those behind the release and whether more classified documents will be released online.
Following the leak of highly classified US documents containing sensitive information about the war in Ukraine and US allies, President Joe Biden has been in close contact with national security officials. While National Security Council spokesman John Kirby stated that the US cannot vouch for the veracity of the documents, he noted that the information circulating online "has no business in the public domain." He also reassured US allies that officials have been in touch with them over the last few days at a high level. The Department of Defense is leading the multi-agency probe, while the Department of Justice has opened a criminal case. The Pentagon has acknowledged that the leaked documents appear to contain sensitive and highly classified material, some of which concern the combat capabilities of Ukraine and US allies such as Israel, Turkey, and South Korea.