Did the US wiretap all the way to Korea... US 'Ukraine Confidential Documents' Leak Sparks Wider Controversy

President Joe Biden [Photo by Yonhap News]

Confidential U.S. military documents about the Ukraine war leaked on social media revealed that the United States has been eavesdropping on allied countries including South Korea.

According to the U.S. daily The New York Times (NYT) on the 8th (local time), at least two parts of the documents contain discussions held within South Korea regarding whether to supply U.S. military shells to be used in the Ukraine war.

The documents state that "South Korean officials were concerned that U.S. President Joe Biden would call South Korean President Yoon Seok-yeol to pressure him into delivering the goods."

This appears to be related to the fact that South Korea decided to provide 155mm shells to the U.S. military in November last year.

Another section explains how these discussions within South Korea were identified, containing the term "signals intelligence reports," which intelligence agencies use to intercept phone calls and electronic messages.

The NYT explained, "The disclosure of such eavesdropping facts disrupts relationships with key partner countries like South Korea, which need assistance in supplying weapons to Ukraine."

If it becomes known that the U.S. has been eavesdropping on neighboring countries including South Korea, trust in the U.S. could decline. This would also impact future diplomatic relations.

Documents that have spread over the past few days on Twitter and Telegram suggest that U.S. intelligence agencies have deeply infiltrated Russian security and intelligence agencies.

It was revealed that the timing of Russian military attacks and specific targets were delivered daily in real-time to U.S. intelligence agencies. Thanks to this, Ukraine appears to have been well-prepared defensively at critical moments using information received from the U.S.

The NYT pointed out, "The leaked documents clearly show that the U.S. conducts espionage not only against Russia but also other allied countries," adding, "Relations with allies have already become complicated, and doubts about the U.S.'s ability to maintain secrecy have arisen."

A senior official from a Western country, after reviewing the documents, called it a "painful leak" and suggested that there might be restrictions on information sharing with the U.S. in the future.

According to the NYT, the leaked documents total about 100 pages. They are presumed to have been compiled by the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff from reports by government intelligence agencies such as the National Security Agency (NSA), Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), and the State Department's Bureau of Intelligence and Research.

The documents spread online in the form of photographed images, and former officials speculate that the leaker folded the confidential briefing materials, put them in a pocket, and then took photos in a secure location.

According to the U.S. daily The Washington Post (WP), many senior officials said the documents do not appear to be completely fabricated and resemble the format of the CIA's "World Intelligence Review" reports submitted to the White House, Department of Defense, and State Department.

The U.S. State Department announced the day before that it plans to launch an official investigation into the circumstances of the document leak.

The Ukrainian government issued a statement on the same day saying, "We are discussing measures to prevent information leaks related to the plans of the Ukrainian military."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.