Tag: leak

‘We’ve proved everybody wrong’: Ukraine claps back after counteroffensive intel leak

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“The same people who said Kyiv would fall in three days are now leaking harmful and equally ridiculous information ahead of an offensive critically important for the entire free world,” said a person in regular contact with senior officials in Kyiv.
“There are some people who continue to be hesitant” about Ukraine’s military chances in the counteroffensive, a Ukrainian defense official said, “but we’ve proved everybody wrong.” The projections of Ukraine’s chances are “not the truth,” this official continued. “It gives us grounds for suspicion” of just how seriously the U.S. backs Ukraine’s objectives of fully pushing Russia out of the country.
That sentiment is widespread within the Ukrainian government, per another person with similar high-level contacts in Kyiv. All three people were granted anonymity to detail sensitive internal deliberations in Ukraine.
The comments make clear that the United States and Ukraine aren’t as in sync as both countries claim 14 months into the war. It could also portend less trust between Washington and Kyiv ahead of a crucial few months of fighting that could dictate the course of the war with Russia. With Russia in control of 20 percent of Ukrainian territory, the hope is that the counteroffensive, even with dwindling supplies, will force Moscow’s troops and mercenaries out of the country they invaded.
The U.S. efforts at damage control do appear to be getting some traction.
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba tweeted that Secretary of State Antony Blinken called him Tuesday to affirm America’s “ironclad U.S. support and vehemently rejected any attempts to cast doubt on Ukraine’s capacity to win on the battlefield.” And Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin also spoke to his counterpart, Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov, on Tuesday to convey Ukraine “will fight the enemy and not be driven by a specific plan.”
The coordination continued on Wednesday when Austin met Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal.
The Ukrainian defense official also asserted that Kyiv has received assurances of America’s continued commitment from Austin and other top Biden administration figures. “You can be forgiven for having doubts,” the official said about the Americans. “We understand it.”

The National Security Council didn’t respond to requests for comment.
The intelligence provides a disheartening evaluation of Ukraine’s anticipated spring counteroffensive, and it isn’t the first such indication of the Biden administration’s lack of confidence in Ukraine’s military chances this year.
Ukraine’s counteroffensive, per the intelligence, will target eastern and southern Ukraine, with an ultimate goal of cutting off Russia’s land access to Crimea, the peninsula Moscow illegally annexed in 2014. Few in the administration, though, believe Kyiv can recapture much of the territory Russia took since its invasion last year, citing manpower, resupply and logistics concerns.
Gen. Mark Milley, the Joint Chiefs chair, has repeatedly questioned Ukraine’s ability to win the war militarily in the near term. “The probability of a Ukrainian military victory, defined as kicking the Russians out of all of Ukraine, to include what they define or what the claim is Crimea, the probability of that happening anytime soon is not high,” he told reporters last November. Milley’s assessment hasn’t changed: he told Defense One last month that Ukraine couldn’t expel Russians “in the near term for this year.”
Ukrainian officials are also increasingly angry at continued leaks about their operations. Reports on sensitive intelligence connecting Ukraine to the assassination of a prominent Russian nationalist’s daughter and a pro-Kyiv group to the bombing of the Nord Stream pipelines frustrated Ukraine.

The Ukrainian and United States flags are placed on the table during a meeting with Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin and Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal at the Pentagon, April 12, 2023, in Washington.
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Alex Brandon/AP
More cracks in the U.S.-Ukraine relationship have emerged in recent months. For example, Kyiv has poured troops and resources into holding Bakhmut, a city in the east of the country. But officials in the White House and Pentagon, among others, don’t see Bakhmut as strategically important. They’ve recommended that Ukraine focus its attention elsewhere.
U.S. officials are particularly concerned about Ukraine using up critical supplies of ammunition in the fight for Bakhmut, as the West races to prepare Kyiv for what’s expected to be brutal fighting this spring.
There are also disagreements about whether it’s worth it for Ukraine to recapture Crimea from Russia. The Biden administration fears Ukraine doesn’t have all it needs to take and hold the peninsula that Moscow has controlled for nearly a decade. Zelenskyy doesn’t agree: “Respect and order will only return to international relations when the Ukrainian flag returns to Crimea — when there is freedom there,” he said in a video message this week.
Pentagon officials are also alarmed by Ukraine’s dwindling supply of medium-range air defense missiles, according to a U.S. official and the leaked documents. Based on current consumption rates of these missiles, Kyiv’s ability to provide air defense to protect the front lines will be “completely reduced” by May 23, according to one slide produced by the Joint Staff, a deadline the U.S. official said is driving the timing of the counteroffensive.
The concern is that once Ukraine is out of medium-range air defense missiles, Russian fighter and bomber aircraft will be free to attack Ukrainian troop and artillery positions from the skies. Until now, neither side has been able to fly combat aircraft freely in the conflict. The West has sent short-range air defense missiles, such as Stingers, but these weapons have limited impact against aircraft, according to the leaked documents.
The U.S. and European countries are sending two Patriot missile defense systems, but a group of Ukrainian air defenders is still wrapping up the final stage of training to operate the equipment in Europe before they head to the battlefield.
Ukraine’s air force is also depleted, and Western countries have declined to send modern fighter aircraft such as F-16s, which could also intercept incoming missiles.
Lara Seligman contributed to this report.

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( With inputs from : www.politico.com )

April 12, 2023
Hyderabad: Court issues notice to TSPSC paper leak case suspects

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Hyderabad: The Nampally court hearing the petition filed by the Enforcement Directorate seeking its permission to interrogate two suspects of the TSPSC paper leak case issued notices to the lawyers of Praveen Kumar and Rajasekhar Reddy on Wednesday.
The Enforcement Directorate had registered a case following complaints of large-scale transfer of money through the Hawala route. The ED, after receiving the complaint, booked a case and started an investigation.
It filed a petition in the Nampally court seeking permission to interrogate two main suspects Praveen and A Rajasekhar.

On Wednesday, after hearing arguments the court issued notices to the lawyers of Praveen and Rajasekhar. The matter is posted for Thursday.
The SIT of Hyderabad police had arrested 17 persons in the TSPSC exam paper leak case. The SIT found the 17 persons and one more who is absconding had gained illegal access to 15 papers of different recruitment exams conducted by the Telangana State Public Service Commission.
The SIT recorded statements of Anita Ramachandran – TSPSC secretary, B Damodar Reddy- Chairman and Linga Reddy – member of TSPSC.
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( With inputs from www.siasat.com )

April 12, 2023
Telangana BJP chief vs Warangal CP in SSC paper leak case

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Hyderabad: Warangal Police Commissioner AV Ranganath on Tuesday refuted BJP state president Bandi Sanjay Kumar’s claims that he was involved in ‘settlements’.
The Karimnagar BJP MP in a press statement on Monday alleged that the cop made money through corrupt means.
Ranganath demanded to know why these charges had not been made sooner and stated that he is ready to resign from his position if Sanjay proved his allegations.

“Many BJP, BRS, and Congress workers have been detained in Nalgonda and Khammam in the past, and now in Warangal. Why were such claims that had not been made previously were being made now?” he questioned.
Ranganath, speaking at a news conference in Hanmakonda, said it looked like Sanjay fabricated the claims ‘out of rage’ after being jailed.
“People in the places where I’ve worked remember and greet me with affection. I deliver my duties beyond politics,” he continued, inviting Sanjay to come and witness for himself who addressed him during the police commissionerate’s public complaints meetings. “No real-estate brokers or big businessmen come here, only ordinary folks seeking justice do,” he remarked.
The Warangal CP further said that rowdies, land grabbers, individuals against whom the PD Act was applied, and other criminals engaged in cases because of him may have met with Sanjay and made such complaints. “Sanjay was not entirely aware of the circumstances of the Vijayawada Ayesha case,” Ranganath said.
He stated that he had taken an oath before taking the position and that he was willing to take it again if the MP desired.

“People performed palabhishekam because they believed in my righteousness. It is incorrect to accuse an officer with the rank of Commissioner of Police of attempting to avoid the case, and warning the investigating officer to be cautious is equivalent to intimidation,” the CP stated.
Ranganath stated that all evidence on the Telangana BJP chief’s phone had been filed to the court and that the phone was not with the police. The phone’s final call was made at 1.14 a.m., and its position was traced to Bejjenki, according to Ranganath.
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#Telangana #BJP #chief #Warangal #SSC #paper #leak #case
( With inputs from www.siasat.com )

April 11, 2023
Congress demands answers on classified document leak

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Turner, who recently returned from a visit to Kyiv, has said the leak could amount to espionage.
The leak, which surfaced on social media over the past week, has stunned the Defense Department and prompted an investigation by the Justice Department. The released information spanned a host of topics but included highly-sensitive documents related to the war in Ukraine.
The White House on Monday said President Joe Biden had been briefed on the leak but demurred on whether it remained an active threat. “We don’t know. We truly don’t,” National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby said.
Rep. Jim Himes (D-Conn.), ranking member of the House Intelligence Committee, called the leak “not remotely acceptable.” In a phone interview, he said he wants to learn as quickly as possible how the leak happened and whether it exposed any sources of U.S. intelligence collection.
“This leak is particularly concerning because it could have very real-time consequences,” he told POLITICO, referring to Ukrainians in their ongoing war with Russia.
Himes said the leak, which comes after the discovery of classified information at properties associated with Donald Trump, Joe Biden and Mike Pence, is indicative of broader problems with classified information handling. He predicted that there would be bipartisan interest revamping classified materials-handling practices.
“It’s clear that we’ve got a larger issue here,” the Connecticut Democrat said. “Clearly, we’ve got to do a better job. And so I think we’ll be very interested in the specifics of this case, but also how they inform a more secure system.”
Regardless of the ongoing status of the threat from the leaked documents, Congress will be actively engaged on the issue when it returns next week.

Senate Intelligence Committee Chair Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.) was briefed Monday evening and vowed his panel would “continue to follow this situation closely,” while urging caution that Russia has a history of spreading disinformation through documents posted online.
The leaders of the House intelligence panel — Turner and Rep. Jim Himes (D-Conn.) — said in a joint statement that they expect to be briefed as the investigation into the leak unfolds.
“Protecting classified information is critical to our national security, and the DOD and Intelligence Community must work quickly to prevent any spillage and identify the source of any leak,” the bipartisan duo said in a Monday statement.
The interest extends beyond the intelligence panels. Rep. Mike Rogers (R-Ala.), chair of the House Armed Services Committee, and Sen. Jack Reed (D-R.I.), chair of the Senate Armed Services Committee, both said they are also seeking answers about the leak.
“Chairman Reed remains focused on supporting and sustaining the international effort to aid Ukraine in its fight to repel Russia’s illegal invasion,” a committee spokesperson said Monday.
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( With inputs from : www.politico.com )

April 11, 2023
Telangana: ED to question key accused in TSPSC paper leak case

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Hyderabad: In a significant development in the Telangana State Public Service (TSPSC) exam paper leak case, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) has entered the scene to question tge key accused.
The central agency filed a petition in the Nampally court, seeking permission to question Praveen Kumar and Rajasekhar Reddy, both suspended employees of the TSPSC who are currently in judicial custody.
As there were allegations of money laundering, the ED moved the court to record the statement of the accused under section 50 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). The agency submitted to the court that it has the powers to take up investigation under Sections 48 and 49.

The ED has registered an Enforcement Case Information Report, based on the media reports, information in public domain and preliminary inputs from intelligence.
The court was told that a four-member team of ED officials will record the statements of the accused.
The ED also sought court’s direction to Chanchalguda Jail superintendent to allow laptops, printer and other electronic gadgets into the jail for recording the statements.
The agency also mentioned in its petition that it had written to the Central Crime Station (CCS) on March 23 seeking documents and details of the case. It sought a direction to the police to hand over the case details.
The ED has also issued notices to two TSPSC officials, including confidential section officer Shankara Lakshmi. They have been asked to appear for questioning on April 12 and 13. The accused had stolen the question papers from Lakshmi’s computer.

Meanwhile, the Special Investigation Team (SIT) of Hyderabad police probing the paper leak on Tuesday submitted its investigation report to the Telangana High Court in a sealed cover. Hearing the petition of NSUI leader Balamoori Venkat, the court had directed the SIT to submit the report.
The Advocate General submitted to the court that out of 18 accused, 17 have been arrested by the SIT while efforts were on to arrest another accused who is in New Zealand.
The petitioner’s counsel argued that he has no trust in SIT which works under the state government. He also submitted to the court that the SIT investigation is confined to few lower-rank employees of the TSPSC. Stating that the ED is talking about transactions from abroad, he said investigation by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) alone can bring out the facts.
The court asked the Advocate General whether candidates were allowed to appear in the examinations as per rules and sought details like the name of the agency which was outsourced the task of conducting the exams.
The paper leak issue rocked the TSPSC last month. Two employees broke into a computer system in the confidential section of TSPSC, stole question papers, and shared them with others.
The TSPSC has cancelled four examinations conducted by it including the preliminary exam conducted for recruitment to Group-1 posts in the government departments.
The SIT has also recorded the statements of TSPSC Chairman, Secretary and a member and also questioned several candidates who had scored good marks in Group-1 exam.
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( With inputs from www.siasat.com )

April 11, 2023
‘We don’t know’ if leak is contained, NSC says of classified military documents

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The documents included material outlining Ukraine’s readiness, training capabilities and death tolls on the battlefield. After reviewing the documents that hit social media in April, POLITICO found that the section detailing death tolls had been altered to show a significantly higher number of Ukrainian deaths.
“We know that some of [the documents] have been doctored,” Kirby said on Monday, but noted that officials were “still working through the validity of all the documents that we know are out there.”
It’s unclear who obtained the documents and who first circulated them online. On Monday, Kirby said it was also unclear whether more documents are out there.
“We don’t know who’s behind this. We don’t know what the motive is. And … we don’t know what else might be out there,” Kirby said. “This is information that has no business in the public domain.”
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( With inputs from : www.politico.com )

April 11, 2023
U.S. in crisis mode with allies after Ukraine intel leak

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Meanwhile, officials in London, Brussels, Berlin, Dubai and Kyiv questioned Washington about how the information ended up online, who was responsible for the leak and what the U.S. was doing to ensure the information was removed from social media. They also questioned whether the Biden administration was taking steps to limit the distribution of future intelligence. As of Monday morning, U.S. officials had told allies the administration was investigating and that they were still trying to understand the full scope of the leak, the European officials said.
Ukraine has long worried about information it shares with the U.S. spilling out into the open. “This case showed that the Ukrainians have been absolutely right about that,” said one of the European officials, who like others was granted anonymity to speak about the sensitive leak. “Americans now owe the Ukrainians. They have to apologize and compensate.”
The saga has left the U.S. relationship with its allies in a state of crisis, raising questions about how Washington will correct what officials worldwide view as one of the largest public breaches of U.S. intelligence since WikiLeaks dumped millions of sensitive documents online from 2006 to 2021.
The distress over the leak is particularly problematic because the majority of the documents focus on the war in Ukraine — an effort the U.S. has repeatedly said hinges on collaboration among allies in NATO, Europe and elsewhere.
“The manner of the leak and the contents are very unusual,” said a former U.S. intelligence analyst who focused on Russia. “I can’t remember a time when there was this volume of a leak and this broad of a subject matter of authentic information that was just put on social media rather than say, the Snowden files, that went through a group of journalists first.”
The Pentagon, CIA, ODNI, and FBI declined to comment.
More than 100 U.S. intelligence documents were posted on Discord, a secure messaging app, as early as March 2 and contained sensitive, classified information about the war in Ukraine, Russian military activity, China and the Middle East. The photographed papers, which appeared to have been folded over and then smoothed out, contained top secret information, including from the Central Intelligence Agency.
POLITICO’s review of the documents shows some that appear to have been assembled into a briefing packet by the Joint Staff’s intelligence arm, known as J2, with summaries of global matters pulled from various U.S. intelligence systems. Some of the documents contain markings in the corners that correspond with specific wires with information that appear to be compiled in summary form — a practice often used by individuals inside the government to prepare briefing packets, the former U.S. intelligence analyst said.

It’s still unclear the extent to which the documents have been altered — and by whom. The documents posted in March do not appear to show any glaring alterations, but when some of those were reposted on Discord in April, at least one paper appears to have been altered to show significantly inflated Ukrainian death tolls.
Pentagon spokesperson Sabrina Singh said in a statement Sunday that the administration has assembled an interagency team “focused on assessing the impact these photographed documents could have on U.S. national security and on our allies and partners.” She confirmed that U.S. officials had engaged with “allies and partners” across the globe, adding that the department was still assessing the “validity” of the documents posted to social media.
It’s unclear who from the Biden administration is involved in that interagency effort. The senior U.S. official said only the highest levels of government were in discussions about how to manage the leak. Even those senior officials who work on Ukraine and Russia policy and on portfolios that pertain to countries mentioned in the documents did not know as of Sunday how the administration would respond.
“I have no idea what the plan is,” another senior U.S. official said. “I’d like to know myself how we’re going to handle.”
Meanwhile, in Kyiv where military leaders are busy preparing for a spring counteroffensive, senior officials blamed Russia for the leak and characterized it as a disinformation campaign.
“It is very important to remember that in recent decades, the most successful operations of the Russian special services have been carried out in Photoshop,” Andriy Yusov, the representative of the Ukrainian Defense Intelligence Main Directorate, said on Friday — adding that a preliminary analysis of the documents showed “distorted figures” on losses suffered by both Russia and Ukraine.
A senior Ukrainian lawmaker said the leak was “not seen as a big issue here.”
But elsewhere in Ukraine in the senior national security ranks, officials were angered by the leak, according to one of the European officials. While the documents are dated and likely have no immediate impact on the country’s battlefield operations, the publishing of the information was viewed internally as an embarrassment and potential long-term security problem for Ukraine’s military commanders.
It’s unclear the extent to which the U.S. will alter its intelligence sharing on the Ukraine war in the days and weeks ahead.
The U.S. has made it a habit of sharing intelligence with Ukraine and European allies since 2022. In the months leading up to the war, the U.S. intelligence community shared information with allies to build a coalition of support for Kyiv and to prepare targeted sanctions on Russian government entities and businesses. Senior U.S. officials have heralded that strategy as a major success — one that allowed the U.S., its allies in Europe and in Kyiv to better prepare for the eventual Russian assault.
Veronika Melkozerova contributed to this report.
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( With inputs from : www.politico.com )

April 10, 2023
Hyderabad: 2 more arrested by SIT in TSPSC paper leak

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Hyderabad: Two more persons were arrested in the TSPSC paper leakage case by the Special Investigation Team on Friday.
The duo was identified as Laukik and Sushmitha. Laukik Sai had bought the DAO exam question paper from Praveen, the prime suspect for Sushmitha, his wife.
The police arrested them based on the information provided by the suspects arrested earlier, during interrogation by the SIT.

The duo was produced before the magistrate and remanded in judicial custody.
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( With inputs from www.siasat.com )

April 7, 2023
Video: Bandi Sanjay released from Karimnagar jail on bail in SSC paper leak case

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Hyderabad: Telangana BJP president and MP Bandi Sanjay was on Friday released from Karimnagar jail after he was granted bail in the SSC paper leak case.
Sanjay was detained by police late Wednesday night from his Karimnagar residence. He was granted bail by a magistrate court in the paper leak case on Thursday.
“The court accepted our request and a bail was granted to Bandi Sanjay on sureties worth Rs 20,000. On production of the release order, he will be released from the Karimnagar jail, ” Bandi Sanjay’s lawyer Shyam Sunder Reddy informed on Thursday.

“However, the court set a condition that he can’t leave India without permission,” the advocate added.
On Wednesday, Bandi Sanjay along with three others was sent to judicial custody till April 19 in the SSC paper leak case.
“Bandi Sanjay and 3 others have been sent to judicial custody till April 19 and will be shifted to Karimnagar jail,” advocate Karuna Sagar, another lawyer of the BJP state chief, had said.
“We will file contempt proceedings against the investigating officer for violating the SC guidelines. We are planning to challenge the order in High Court tomorrow,” the lawyer had added.

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( With inputs from www.siasat.com )

April 7, 2023
Video: Bandi Sanjay released from Karimnagar jail on bail in SSC paper leak case

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Hyderabad: Telangana BJP president and MP Bandi Sanjay was on Friday released from Karimnagar jail after he was granted bail in the SSC paper leak case.
Sanjay was detained by police late Wednesday night from his Karimnagar residence. He was granted bail by a magistrate court in the paper leak case on Thursday.
“The court accepted our request and a bail was granted to Bandi Sanjay on sureties worth Rs 20,000. On production of the release order, he will be released from the Karimnagar jail, ” Bandi Sanjay’s lawyer Shyam Sunder Reddy informed on Thursday.

“However, the court set a condition that he can’t leave India without permission,” the advocate added.
On Wednesday, Bandi Sanjay along with three others was sent to judicial custody till April 19 in the SSC paper leak case.
“Bandi Sanjay and 3 others have been sent to judicial custody till April 19 and will be shifted to Karimnagar jail,” advocate Karuna Sagar, another lawyer of the BJP state chief, had said.
“We will file contempt proceedings against the investigating officer for violating the SC guidelines. We are planning to challenge the order in High Court tomorrow,” the lawyer had added.

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( With inputs from www.siasat.com )

April 7, 2023