Criminal probe launched into reported comments by Ukraine's top spy
The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) has initiated a criminal investigation after media reports claimed Kiev's top military spy, Kirill Budanov, had warned a high-level meeting in the country's parliament that Ukraine could cease to exist if it does not engage in peace talks with Russia, a senior MP said on Friday in Kiev.
Earlier this week, the Strana.ua news outlet claimed that Budanov, Ukraine's head of military intelligence, suggested during a closed session of the national parliament that Ukraine might not survive unless negotiations with Russia began by summer. The Main Directorate of Intelligence of the Ministry of Defense (HUR) has refuted these claims, asserting that the purported statements were false and taken out of context.
MP Roman Kostenko, who is the secretary of the Verkhovna Rada's Defense Committee, announced that the SBU has launched a criminal probe into the unauthorized disclosure of information from that classified session.
'Some people, for the sake of hype, are trying to show that 'I know this.' But these are issues of state level, which are worth human lives, among other things,'
Kostenko said.
The lawmaker stressed that those responsible for disclosing the details of the closed hearing should be held accountable, as such leaks could compromise Ukraine's national security. He didn't specify, however, who exactly is being targeted in the investigation or if the probe was focused solely on the leak from the top-secret session of parliament.
Previously, Kiev's top Ukrainian military commander, General Aleksandr Syrsky, had also called for the introduction of censorship of the press in the interest of national defense, citing a need to hide sensitive information from the public eye.
Last month, the New York Times claimed that Kiev was considering a crackdown on Telegram, which has reportedly become the primary news source for roughly 70% of Ukrainians. Officials told the outlet that Telegram has also become a
'problem'
for Kiev because it has little leverage over the app.
Read more
Ukrainian army faces 'desertion crisis' – Guardian
Meanwhile, Ukraine has been facing growing pressure on the battlefield as Russian troops have continued to advance in multiple sectors, prompting Kiev's forces to withdraw from their positions. Ukrainian officials and commanders have been increasingly voicing concerns over manpower shortages amid a fraught mobilization campaign, with recruitment officers often facing open resistance from reluctant draftees.
Earlier this month, Russian President Vladimir Putin's senior aide, Nikolay Patrushev, also warned that Ukraine could cease to exist as a state during the coming year, suggesting that it was pointless to negotiate a resolution of the conflict with any other Western nation than the US.
Moscow has repeatedly stressed that it remains open to peace talks with Ukraine and with the US but has noted Kiev's reluctance to engage in negotiations, particularly as Vladimir Zelensky's ban on contact with Putin remains in effect.
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