Information campaign launched to discredit military intelligence, Ukraine's Defence Intelligence says

Defence Intelligence of Ukraine (DIU) has said that a disinformation campaign aimed at discrediting the military intelligence agency and its units has been launched, with media outlets, bloggers and Telegram channels expected to be involved.

Source: DIU on Telegram

Quote: "Defence Intelligence of Ukraine is warning that a targeted disinformation campaign is being launched with the aim of discrediting military intelligence and combat units of DIU.

To carry out the campaign, its organisers plan to involve media outlets, bloggers and Telegram channels with questionable reputations, including in exchange for financial reward. We urge you to trust only verified official sources of information."

Details: DIU also urged media outlets, journalists and bloggers to contact law enforcement agencies immediately if they are asked to publish or distribute unverified and dubious information.

Background:

• On 1 September, the Russian Volunteer Corps said that its deputy commander for combat operations, Stepan Kaplunov, had been abducted by unknown individuals in the courtyard of a residential building. [The Russian Volunteer Corps is a military and political organisation established in 2022 that consists of Russian volunteers who have been fighting for Ukraine since 2014]
• On the morning of 2 September, reports spread on social media about a shootout said to be between DIU and the Security Service of Ukraine (SSU) in Kyiv's Dniprovskyi district, and that it was somehow connected to Kaplunov's disappearance.
• Meanwhile, the SSU said in the morning that, together with DIU, it had foiled a terrorist attack against a leader of a Russian opposition political national movement who had arrived in Ukraine.
• Later, Kaplunov's lawyer, Taras Borovskyi, said that the serviceman had been released, but his whereabouts were unknown.
• On the morning of 3 September, the SSU released a video in which Kaplunov admitted to having links to Russia's Federal Security Service (FSB) and said an attempt had been made to recruit him to assassinate Ukrainian military personnel and other individuals. However, his lawyer insists that the confession was made under duress.
• Kaplunov himself said on 3 September that he had been abducted by SSU officers and described how he had been made to confess under duress.

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