Ukraine changes some military plans due to leaked US classified documents

CNN reported the information, citing a source close to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

The secret Pentagon documents, which have been published online in recent weeks, reportedly show how the US spies on both allies and opponents, which has deeply concerned US officials who fear that the revelations could jeopardize sensitive sources and compromise important international relations.

For example, some of the original documents reveal the extent of US wiretapping of key allies, including South Korea, Israel, and Ukraine.

Others reveal the extent of American penetration of the Russian Ministry of Defense and Russia's Wagner PMC, largely through intercepted communications and human sources that may now be cut off or jeopardized.

Some of the documents reveal key weaknesses in Ukraine's weapons, air defense, battalion strength and readiness at a critical time in the war, when Ukrainian forces are preparing to launch a counteroffensive against the Russian army - and just as the US and Ukraine have begun to develop a more trusting intelligence-sharing relationship.

Ukraine has already changed some of its military plans because of the leak, a source close to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy tells CNN.

Deputy Pentagon spokeswoman Sabrina Singh said that the US Department of Defense has made an "interagency effort" to assess the impact of the leak.

"The Department of Defense continues to review and assess the validity of the photographed documents that are circulating on social media sites and that appear to contain sensitive and highly classified material. An interagency effort has been stood up, focused on assessing the impact these photographed documents could have on U.S. national security and on our Allies and partners," Singh said in a statement.

US officials spoke with allies and partners over the weekend about the leak and briefed relevant congressional committees.

The leak has also prompted the Pentagon to take steps to tighten controls on the flow of such top-secret documents, which are usually available to hundreds of people in the government, officials said.

The joint staff is currently examining distribution lists to find out who is receiving the data, one defense official said.

Many of the documents are marked to indicate that they were prepared by the Joint Staff's intelligence unit, known as J2, and appear to be briefing documents.

• On April 6, the New York Times reported on the leak of classified documents detailing US and NATO plans to build up the Ukrainian army ahead of a planned counteroffensive. The Pentagon launched an investigation.

• Almost immediately, a new batch of classified documents appeared on social media, allegedly revealing US national security secrets regarding Ukraine, the Middle East, and China.

• The Institute for the Study of War then noted that the leak of classified US documents had increased Russia's fear of a counteroffensive by the Ukrainian Armed Forces.

• On April 8, the Defence Intelligence of Ukraine reported that the so-called classified military documents on the plans for the Ukrainian Armed Forces' offensive were in fact a forgery and a special operation by Russian special services. Russia could have forged the documents to disrupt Western aid to Ukraine.

• On April 9, investigative journalists from Bellingcat found out that the original source of the leaked secret Pentagon documents on the Ukrainian Armed Forces' counteroffensive was a Discord server.

• The Jerusalem Post also noted that the secret Pentagon documents, which were previously circulated on social media, contain information that the Mossad incited Israelis to protest against judicial reform.