Alleged secret plans for aid to Western Ukraine surfaced

Secret documents have reportedly surfaced on the internet about plans by the US and NATO to strengthen Ukraine’s army ahead of a planned offensive against the Russian occupier. It was not initially known whether the documents were genuine and who may have published them. The US Department of Defense has launched an investigation into who may be behind the publication, the New York Times reported Thursday (local time), citing US government officials.

Meanwhile, heavy fighting continued near Bakhmut and artillery fire again caused many casualties, including civilians. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov again threatened an end to the grain deal in Ankara.

Secret documents embellished for the sake of Moscow

Military experts said the documents had been manipulated to Moscow, suggesting a disinformation campaign from Russia, the newspaper continued. For example, US estimates of Ukrainian losses are exaggerated, but information on Russian losses is very low.

Attempts by the US government to have the documents removed have so far been unsuccessful, the newspaper writes. The documents were distributed via the social media platforms Twitter and Telegram. The documents are five weeks old and contain no concrete plans for attacks or major offensives. NATO in Brussels declined to comment when asked. “We never comment on alleged leaks of classified documents,” said a spokesman.

Russian military experts could still glean valuable information from the documents, such as arms shipment schedules or Ukrainian troop levels, the newspaper wrote. The published documents are the first known success of Russian espionage since the beginning of the Russian attack on all of Ukraine in February last year.

Russia speaks of deception maneuvers

On the Russian side, the leaked documents were received with skepticism. Vladimir Rogov, a member of the military administration deployed by Moscow in the occupied southern Ukrainian region of Zaporizhia, said the move may have been misleading. The documents show that Ukraine has some 50,000 soldiers on the front lines. “But I think this is a classic disinformation campaign designed to mislead us that they (Ukrainian units) are not ready and we can relax,” he said.

Some of the information in the file is certainly true, but it is intended to create the illusion that there is still time for a Ukrainian attack. “The situation at the front says something completely different: the technology is coming and ready, the people are trained, the number of soldiers is big enough,” Rogov warned. According to experts, the Zaporizhia region is the most likely direction for a Ukrainian counter-offensive.

Continued bitter fighting over Bakhmut and civilian casualties

According to the Ukrainian General Staff, 40 Russian attacks in the Donetsk and Luhansk regions have been repelled since Thursday. Fighting continued particularly fierce near the town of Bakhmut in the Donetsk region. Stronger Russian attacks were also recorded at Avdiivka to the north and Marjinka to the west of Donetsk city. A Russian Su-25 ground attack aircraft was shot down near Marjinka.

Russia threatens to end grain deal in May

During a visit to the Turkish capital Ankara, Lavrov again threatened to end the international agreement on grain exports from Ukraine. Russia will not renew the agreement without easing its own agricultural exports, Lavrov said Friday. “If there is still no movement to remove barriers to Russian fertilizer and grain exports, we will consider whether we need the agreement,” he told the state news agency Tass. Ukraine is one of the world’s leading exporters. The Russian blockade led to fears of a hunger crisis in poorer countries. An agreement was then negotiated in the summer, mediated by Turkey and the UN. Since then, according to Turkish information, more than 27 million tons of Ukrainian grain have entered the world market. (sda/dpa)