What you need to know
- According to a new report, a Minecraft Discord server was directly involved with the leak of classified US Defense Department documents.
- The documents reportedly contain sensitive information about the war in Ukraine, US allies, China, "defense and security issues in the Middle East," and more. The Pentagon has stated the leak is a "very serious" risk to national security.
- The leak is being actively investigated by the US government. It has been determined that the documents first circulated on Twitter, 4chan, Telegram, and the aforementioned Minecraft Discord server.
- National Security Council Coordinator for Strategic Communications John Kirby said "I don't know" when asked if the leak had been contained or if further documents were released.
According to a new report by BBC News, a Discord server for Minecraft — one of the most popular video games of all time — was directly involved with a recent leak of classified US Defense Department documents. Reportedly, these documents contain sensitive information about the ongoing war in Ukraine, as well as China, allies of the US, "defense and security issues in the Middle East," and more. The Pentagon has stated that the leak is a "very serious" risk to national security.
In BBC News' review of "more than 20" of the documents, the publication stated that their contents include details about Ukrainian and Russian deployments in advance of Ukrainian military's planned spring offensive. Specifically, the documents "outline US training and equipment being provided to Ukraine ahead of the offensive, as well as when various Ukrainian units will be ready and the anticipated delivery time of military supplies." The report indicates that both US President Joe Biden and Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin have been briefed on the matter.
The Pentagon initially became aware of the leak last week and is actively investigating it alongside officials from the Justice Department, the White House, and other agencies within the US government. It has been determined that in addition to first circulating on platforms like Twitter, 4chan, and Telegram, the leaked documents were also shared on a Minecraft Discord server. Currently, details about this Minecraft Discord server and whether anything happened in-game or not are unknown.
"We're still investigating how this happened, as well as the scope of the issue," said Chris Meagher, the Assistant to the Secretary of Defense for Public Affairs, in a statement. "There have been steps to take a closer look at how this type of information is distributed and to whom."
Notably, Meagher wouldn't say whether or not the Pentagon believes that the leaked documents are legitimate. However, he reportedly said that some "appear to have been altered," suggesting that they were changed in some way. Meagher also added that the structure of the documents is similar to ones "used to provide daily updates to our senior leaders on Ukraine and Russia-related operations, as well as other intelligence updates."
Additionally, Meagher stated that US officials have moved to reassure its allies "of our commitment to safeguarding intelligence and fidelity to our security partnerships." Meagher also said that "the Ukrainians have demonstrated their capability and competence in this war" when asked how the leak could affect the conflict.
"The President and Secretary [of Defense] have both made clear that the United States is going to be with them for as long as it takes," he said.
When National Security Council Coordinator for Strategic Communications John Kirby was asked if the leak was contained and if other classified documents were released, Kirby said "I don't know."
