One of the Pentagon’s classified “documents,” dated March 1, 2023. DR
The title is a bit misleading. Still, the Pentagon is trying to identify the source of the leak of classified documents on social media detailing the strategy of the United States and NATO allies to support Ukraine in the face of the Russian invasion, reports The New York Times. “We are aware of press reports of social media posts and the department is reviewing the matter,” Pentagon spokeswoman Sabrina Singh said.
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Rather than “plans,” these documents, which date from early March, are more like daily briefings and war-related statistics and contain no concrete plans for upcoming military operations. They mention, for example, the speed with which the Ukrainian armed forces are using Himar’s mobile rocket launcher ammunition, or the schedule of arms deliveries or the training that the West is providing to Kiev’s soldiers. According to the leaks, 12 Ukrainian brigades will be formed, including nine that will be trained and equipped by the United States, the New York Times notes.
A map tries to estimate the dates of the “Raspoutitsa”, a period when, due to the snowmelt in spring, a large part of the flat land is transformed into a sea of mud under the action of water. The phenomenon particularly affects roads when they are not paved.
Revised Documents
However, some appear to have been modified to present the situation in a more favorable light for the Russians, particularly by minimizing the extent of their casualties. As Wall Street Journal foreign policy correspondent Yaroslav Trofimov or Bellingcat’s Aric Toler point out in relation to the pro-Kremlin reports, the US estimate has fallen from 43,500 Russian military deaths to 17,500, while 17,500 dead Ukrainians have become 71,500. Likewise, Russian vehicle losses fell from 6,004 to 600.
When secret US slides were leaked yesterday, they were quickly re-released by Russian propaganda channels – but after a little… https://t.co/OnLpramigF
tweet by a Wall Street Journal reporter
The earliest versions of the unedited leak I can find – on 4chan of all places – also has an additional card from t… https://t.co/TKC96AWN2k
tweet by a Bellingcat reporter
The Pentagon asked Twitter to remove posts containing the documents. Elon MuskThe head of the social network has a very clear opinion on the question: “Yes, you can completely delete elements from the Internet. It works perfectly and doesn’t draw attention at all to what you’re trying to hide. »
For his part, Oleksi Danilov, secretary of Ukraine’s National Security and Defense Council, told Radio Svoboda that “there are no more than five people on the planet who have information about the place, time and start of the counteroffensive”.
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