‘Ukrainian shell controversy’ by wiretapping South Korea in the exposure of US intelligence documents
As the number of disclosures of US Department of Defense information documents increased, South Korea found that the “Ukrainian shells” section was bugged in wiretapping of allies.
The New York Times, which analyzed about 50 out of 100 of the exposed US government documents, said, "There have been at least two discussions about South Korea's internal debate over whether to provide US shells for use in Ukraine in violation of Seoul's policy of providing lethal aid." “A section of the document reports that South Korean officials were concerned that President Biden would call the South Korean president and pressure him to deliver goods to Seoul,” it reported on the 8th.
The NYT continued, “Another section of the CIA’s dossier is more explicit about how the US learned about the South Korean deliberations, and that information is used by intelligence agencies for wiretapping communications of all kinds, from phone calls to electronic messages. It was pointed out that it came from the term 'signal intelligence report'.”
The exposed documents were prepared by the Joint Chiefs of Staff of the US Department of Defense, but included information from many agencies, including the National Security Agency (NSA), the State Department's Intelligence and Investigation Agency, and the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), and some data were collected under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA). NYT said that further distribution is not allowed without the Attorney General's permission.
Regarding the type of document, the NYT said, “One section is classified as coming from the CIA Daily Intelligence Update, and the material in that section provides details about who the CIA is spying on and how.” “Among the intelligence reports, "It shows that the CIA is using intercepted communications to spy on discussions inside the Russian Ministry of Defense, and shows that US intelligence agencies are not only spying on Russians, but also eavesdropping on important allies."
A senior Western intelligence official who reviewed the documents said, “Disclosure of data is painful. "In order for various agencies to provide data to each other, they need trust and assurance that certain sensitive information will be kept secret," he told the NYT.
Regarding the adverse impact on diplomatic relations, the NYT said, “This document can also harm diplomatic relations in other ways. Newly released intelligence documents also make it clear that the US is spying on Russia as well as its allies,” he said. If you can decide how to block that flow, you can have an impact,” quoted a former and current intelligence official.
A senior US intelligence official described the additional leaks as a "five-eyes nightmare," the NYT said.
'Five Eyes' is an information-sharing alliance of five countries: the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand.
The US Department of Justice (VOA) reported on the 9th that it had launched an investigation into the incident and said that it was communicating with the Department of Defense.
The Pentagon said on the 6th that it is investigating the spread of classified documents containing details of the US and NATO plans for the war in Ukraine.
According to VOA, the exposed documents include the movement of Ukrainian and US military leaders in the data of the 'war situation as of March 1', which is classified as 'first-class secret', including the current status of Ukrainian army operational weapons, troop replenishment, and training.
Mykhailo Podolyak, an adviser to the Ukrainian president and dealing with the Western media, said on Telegram that the leak was "intended to sow distrust among Ukrainian partners."
Some of the intelligence briefings provide analysis and broad warnings of Russian plans, while others contain actionable information for Ukraine to use in its own defense.
The New York Times said, "This leak has already complicated relations with our allies and raised doubts about America's ability to keep secrets."
An exposed section of the report described an intelligence campaign that Russia's military intelligence unit, the GRU, was planning to shape public opinion against the United States in Africa and "promote Russian foreign policy."