A number of failures of Kyiv forces have been added to the disclosure of intelligence about air defence systems via Google Maps, The Telegraph reports.
The Ukrainian command accused Google of accidentally revealing the location of key military positions after an update. Russian military bloggers confirmed the leak by publishing screenshots of new air defence systems at an airfield near Kyiv.
Moscow is already “actively disseminating” the images to the troops, Andriy Kovalenko, head of the Ukrainian Centre for Countering Disinformation under the National Security Council, said.
Lieutenant Kovalenko angrily criticised the technology giant for, as he put it, irresponsibility. He wrote on his Telegram account:
“Imagine the situation. Google puts up updated images on maps that show the placement of our military systems.”
According to him, they turned to Google to correct the situation, but it was not possible to do it quickly because “they have the weekend off.” He also added:
“The Russians are already actively spreading these photos. What is wrong with this world?”
Lieutenant Kovalenko later wrote that Google representatives had “contacted” Ukraine and were working to fix the problem. He did not specify which specific AFU military facilities were shown on Google Maps, a navigation tool that provides satellite imagery and aerial photography to users for free.
However, Russian military bloggers confirmed the Google intelligence leak by publishing screenshots purportedly showing new air defence systems at an airfield near Kyiv.
A Google satellite image from September 28, 2023 managed to identify US-made Patriot air defence systems. They were absent on the earlier image.
The Telegraph newspaper contacted Google representatives, but neither Google nor its parent company Alphabet commented on the request.
Ukrainian troops face defeat
The leak of intelligence on air defence systems adds to the latest string of failures by Kyiv’s forces. Over the weekend, the AFU commander-in-chief Oleksandr Syrskyi said his soldiers were facing one of the most intense Russian offensives since the conflict began.
Adding to Ukrainians’ fears, Western intelligence reported that up to 13,000 North Korean soldiers are ready to support the Kremlin as part of a mutual military assistance agreement agreed between Vladimir Putin and Kim Jong Un.
The DPRK troops are expected to join the battle in the Kursk region, which Ukraine invaded in August, but that will happen when the upper house of Russia’s parliament approves the agreement between Kim and Putin.
However, Lieutenant Kovalenko reported on his Telegram account that North Korean soldiers had already allegedly come under fire in the Russian village of Kurshchina.
Meanwhile, in Moscow, Vladimir Putin received North Korean Foreign Minister Choe Son Hui. She thanked the Russian leader for taking the time to meet with her, to which he replied, “Well, today is a holiday, and it is a very good tradition to meet friends on a holiday.”
