(UnitedVoice.com) – Department of Defense leaks are not unheard of throughout American history. In 1971, the Pentagon Papers were widely circulated after being released to the press. The documents detailed the United States’ military and political involvement in Vietnam from 1945 to 1967. The leak shocked the nation.
Decades later, in 2010, former military analyst Chelsea Manning stole classified information from the government and gave it to Wikileaks. The documents revealed information about the War on Terror and actions taken post-9/11. Just like the leak in the ‘70s, this one shocked the country. Now, there’s been another major leak.
Materials Posted Online
Classified war documents appeared on social media platforms that detailed US and NATO plans for the Ukrainian military before an offensive against the Russian invasion. CNN reported some of the documents were uploaded on Discord late last month. They were photos that showed documents on top of magazines and strewn around other objects like Gorilla Glue. A spokesperson for the social media site said they’re cooperating with authorities. The documents were also shared on Telegram, often used by Russians, and Twitter.
The documents had top secret and classified markings on them. They included information about the US spying programs on its enemies and allies like Israel and South Korea. Others included NATO and US involvement in the Russian war on Ukraine and the international organization’s plans to build up the Ukrainian military ahead of an offensive.
Additionally, the documents included information about how the US has penetrated the controversial Wagner Group, a Russian mercenary organization.
Not All Is as It Seems
According to The New York Times, some of the documents appeared to have been changed. For example, one reported the number of casualties from the Russian military, but they were changed to undercount how many have been killed. By comparison, the number of Ukrainian casualties was altered to overcount the number of deaths.
Al Jazeera reported South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol’s office called one of the documents “Utterly false” and called attempts to hurt its relationship with the US an act that “compromis[es] national interest.” Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin also reportedly said the document is a fake.
The Departments of Defense and Justice have launched investigations into the leak. Sabrina Singh, the Pentagon’s deputy press secretary, told the press that the DoD was reviewing the “validity of the photographed documents” that were posted online. She went on to say an “interagency effort” is assessing the situation and how it might impact the US.
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