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- Classified documents on the Ukraine war recently leaked
- They show special forces from Western countries are in Ukraine
- The Biden administration says there are no US combat forces there
Updated:
(NewsNation) — President Joe Biden said from day one of the Russian invasion there would be no U.S. military boots on the ground in Ukraine — but we’ve now learned there are at least some military personnel from America attached to the U.S. Embassy in Kyiv.
A senior White House official told NewsNation there is a small U.S. military presence in Ukraine providing Embassy security services and accountability for weapons getting sent there.
This all came to light in leaked Pentagon documents showing the U.S. and its allies, including the United Kingdom, Latvia, France and the Netherlands, have special forces on the ground in Ukraine.
The response from the Biden administration today has been that there’s nothing to see here.
This is something they’ve talked about before — and the administration reaffirmed there are no combat forces in Ukraine.
Ukraine’s defense minister denies claims NATO troops are fighting against Russian armed forces.
It should be said NewsNation — and other news organizations — have not confirmed the accuracy of the information included in these leaked documents, though the Pentagon has confirmed the leak’s authenticity.
Some of the documents also appear to have been doctored after they were leaked as well.
On Wednesday, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin met with Ukraine’s Prime Minister at the Pentagon. Austin reaffirmed U.S. support for Ukraine amid the document leak.
“I’m confident that we will meet Ukraine’s defense needs through this spring and beyond,” Austin said. “As the president has repeatedly made clear we will stand by Ukraine as long as it takes.”
A senior defense official didn’t rule out the possibility of more leaks — saying officials are still assessing the full scope of what they’re dealing with.