Russia likely behind leak of American military documents on Ukraine: US officials

US officials said the documents appear to have been altered to lower the number of casualties suffered by Russian forces in the Ukraine war

The Justice Department said it was probing the leak after new posts containing US military secrets about Ukraine, China and the Middle East appeared online

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A Ukrainian serviceman fires self-propelled howitzers at an undisclosed position near the outskirts of Bakhmut, Donetsk region, on April 7. Photo: EPA-EFE

Published: 9:43am, 8 Apr 2023

Russia or pro-Russian elements are likely behind the leak of several classified US military documents posted on social media that offer a partial, month-old snapshot of the war in Ukraine, three US officials said on Friday, while the Justice Department said separately it was probing the leak.

The documents appear to have been altered to lower the number of casualties suffered by Russian forces, the US officials said, adding their assessments were informal and separate from the investigation into the leak itself.

The US officials spoke on condition of anonymity given the sensitivity of the matter and declined to discuss the documents in any detail.

The Kremlin and Russia’s embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

An initial batch of documents circulated on sites including Twitter and Telegram, dated March 1 and bearing markings showing them classified as “Secret” and “Top Secret.”