The United States provided intelligence to the Ukrainian military that facilitated the killing of Russian generals in the ongoing conflict in Ukraine, unnamed senior U.S. officials have told the New York Times.
According to the Times, this transfer of information demonstrates the broader efforts of the American government to provide Ukraine with real-time help on the battlefield.
“The United States is focusing on providing location and other information about the Russian military’s mobile headquarters, which is often relocating,” the NYT wrote. “Ukrainian officers have combined this geographical information with their knowledge and carried out artillery strikes and other attacks that have killed Russian officers,” the newspaper added, although it did not specify how many Russian generals were killed based on information provided by the Americans.
Some attacks happened without American support
Ukrainian officials say that the defenders have eliminated a dozen Russian generals since the invasion began, a number which analysts consider to be very high. Russian denies that so many generals have died. Not all attacks were a result of documents provided by the Americans. For instance, a strike at the weekend which seemingly injured the Russian Chief of General Staff Valery Gerasimov took place without American support.
“Targeting assistance is part of a secret effort by the Biden administration to provide Ukraine with real-time battlefield information. This information also includes the expected movements of Russian troops,” the Times report said.
Washington tried to keep this form of assistance largely secret, fearing that Russia would see it as an escalation and that it would provoke Russian President Vladimir Putin to start a broader war.
