Secret documents that appear to detail U.S. and NATO efforts to aid the Ukrainian military were posted on social media this week, according to media reports, representing a rare leak of potentially sensitive internal war planning materials at a crucial moment in Ukraine’s war with Russia.
But Ukrainian officials said they believe the documents were forged by Russia or pro-Russian actors, raising questions about their authenticity and accuracy. It appears the documents were altered, raising the possibility that the underlying materials are genuine but important details were changed by pro-Russian actors. For example, the documents list the number of estimated Russian military deaths so far in the war at just 16,000. Western officials put the number of Russian casualties at nearly 200,000.
The purported leak, first reported late Thursday by The New York Times, comes as Ukrainian forces prepare for a high-stakes spring counteroffensive against the invading Russian army. The papers, which were posted to Twitter and Telegram and have since prompted a Pentagon investigation, do not offer specific battle plans for Ukraine’s coming operations.
But the documents do contain some information that would surely be valuable to Russian commanders. For example, the papers detail the “expenditure rate” of U.S.-supplied artillery systems by the Ukrainian military, the newspaper reported. Such information would give Russian forces insight into how quickly the Ukrainian military is burning through its resources.
Other documents reportedly include lists of Ukrainian troop units and their training schedules, along with breakdowns of the equipment, vehicles and other items those units will need for counteroffensive operations.
The Defense Department said it is investigating the disclosures.
“We are aware of the reports of social media posts and the department is reviewing the matter,” Pentagon spokesperson Sabrina Singh told The Times.
There are also signs that the documents may have been altered, including the Russian death toll number, suggesting that perhaps pro-Russian actors may be behind the leak. Throughout the conflict, Moscow has routinely downplayed the number of its soldiers who have been killed or wounded while inflating the number of Ukrainian casualties.
Ukrainian officials seized on those discrepancies.
“In recent decades, the most successful operations of the Russian special services took place in Photoshop,” Ukrainian Defense Ministry spokesperson Andrii Yusov said Friday.
Reuters reported Friday that pro-Russian figures are likely behind the leak and that they appear to have altered some details, the news outlet said, citing three unnamed U.S. officials.
It’s not clear how the document leak could impact Ukrainian counteroffensive plans, if at all. Ukrainian forces are locked in a bitter battle for the strategically vital city of Bakhmut in eastern Ukraine. Western intelligence sources say that Russian troops have made modest gains in recent days.
“Russia has made further gains and has now highly likely advanced into the town center, and has seized the west bank of the Bakhmutka River,” the British Ministry of Defense said in a Twitter post on Friday, adding that Ukrainian supply lines are now threatened.
“Russian regular forces, likely including airborne troops, have probably reinforced the area, and Russia is again using artillery more effectively in the sector,” British defense officials said.
• Ben Wolfgang can be reached at bwolfgang@washingtontimes.com.
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