BURIED

Russian Spies Accused Kremlin of Hiding True Death Toll in Ukraine: U.S. Intel

New leaked intelligence files shed light on the internal conflict in the Russian government.

Russia’s FSB intelligence agency accused the country’s Defense Ministry of “obfuscating Russian casualties in Ukraine,” according to a report about a new trove of U.S. intelligence documents leaked online. The New York Times says one file dated Feb. 28 shows that the FSB called into question the accuracy of the Kremlin’s figures about how many of its fighters had been killed or wounded during the invasion, arguing that the numbers exclude personnel with the Russian National Guard, mercenaries with Wagner Group, and recruits sent into the conflict from Chechnya. Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said in September that a little under 6,000 Russians had died during the invasion of Ukraine. The leaked document reportedly claims the FSB “calculated the actual number of Russians wounded and killed in action was closer to 110,000.” U.S. intelligence officials say the discrepancy demonstrates “the continuing reluctance of military officials to convey bad news up the chain of command” in Russia.