Biden tells top security officials 'sharing leak intelligence with Ukrainians must stop'

As the Russia Ukraine war has entered its 75th day, United States President Joe Biden told his top national security officials that leaks concerning US intelligence data-sharing with Ukrainians are not useful and should be stopped, as per an official source familiar with the conversation. These remarks of Biden came after the White House, last week, rejected to give direct intelligence to Ukrainians "with the intent to kill Russian generals," CNN reported.

Following that, Biden met individually with Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, CIA Director William Burns, as well as Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines. According to the official, US President Biden informed the officials that it was not beneficial for information that the US was providing to Ukrainian forces opposing the Russian incursion to become public and that such leaks must end.  

Further, on Monday, May 9, White House press secretary Jen Psaki told the media that the President was "displeased" by the disclosures and said that they were "inaccurate." According to the CNN report, Biden's perspective "was that it was an overstatement of our role, an inaccurate statement, and also an understatement of the Ukrainians' role and their leadership, and he does not, did not, (feel) they were constructive," Psaki said, after declining to confirm conversations between the President and his team. 

US has always been open about providing intelligence to Ukrainians but with a limit

US authorities have always been open about providing intelligence to Ukrainians, but have also stated that there is a limit to what is provided to them. A spokesperson for the National Security Council stated last week that in addition to delivering weaponry to the battlefield, officials had also offered intelligence "to help the Ukrainians defend their nation." 

Officials from the Biden administration have previously stated that the intelligence it supplies with Ukraine is subject to strict limitations, including a prohibition on giving precise targeting intelligence for key Russian figures by name. These restrictions are part of a White House attempt to avoid crossing a boundary that Moscow may see as overly aggressive, CNN reported. 

Meanwhile, President Joe Biden has signed a bipartisan bill to revive the World War II-era "lend-lease" scheme, which helped defeat Nazi Germany, to assist Kyiv and its Eastern European partners, in an attempt to show a unified front against Russia's invasion of Ukraine. The signing took place as the US Congress prepares to release billions more to combat Russia in the conflict, with Democrats planning $40 billion in military and humanitarian aid, far over Biden's proposal of $33 billion. 

With a significant deadline approaching in ten days, Biden asserted it was critical that Congress authorise the latest Ukraine assistance package to prevent any disruption in military equipment being provided to help fight the war. 

(Image: AP)