US officials think Russia is behind military documents leak: Report

US officials said on Friday (April 7) that Russia or pro-Russian elements were likely to be behind the leak of several secret documents posted on social media. These documents appeared to have been altered to lower the number of casualties suffered by Russian troops. The unnamed officials were quoted by Reuters.

There was no immediate comment from Kremlin and Russian embassy in Washington.

Reuters said that The Pentagon has declined to comment on the authenticity of the documents circulating on sites including Twitter and Telegram, which are dated March 1 and bear markings showing them classified as "Secret" and "Top Secret."

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A leak of such sensitive documents is highly unusual and would automatically trigger an investigation.

"We are aware of the reports of social media posts and the Department (of Defense) is reviewing the matter," Pentagon spokesperson Sabrina Singh said.

One document posted on social media said 16,000 to 17,500 Russian forces had been killed since Russia's Feb. 24, 2022, invasion of Ukraine.

The United States believes that actual figure is much higher, at around 200,000 Russians killed and wounded, officials say.

The Pentagon's review of the apparent leak was first reported by the New York Times.

Russia attacked Ukraine in February last year. After initial gains, the Russian forces were forced to retreat in the face of Ukrainian counterattack.

(With inputs from agencies)

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