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Kent, United Kingdom: Highly classified documents from the Ministry of Defence were found at a bus stop.
Reportedly, the papers contain information on HMS Defender and the British military in Afghanistan, among other things. HMS Defender was followed by Russian aircraft and coastguard ships last week as it approached the coast of Crimea; it is believed the papers contain information connected to this.
Other documents found apparently include details about possible UK military presence in Afghanistan after a Nato operation, led by the United States, comes to a close in the middle-eastern country.
It’s like @aianucci @johncleese and @rickygervais are writing the government scripts for them …. Classified Ministry of Defence documents found at bus stop in Kent https://t.co/9ny5TjJuaV
— ALASTAIR CAMPBELL (@campbellclaret) June 27, 2021
Authorities have said an investigation is underway into how the classified papers ended up at the bus stop, as per the BBC.
The classified papers were reported missing by a Ministry of Defence employee, according to a spokesperson, who added:
“It would be inappropriate to comment further.”
The 50-pages were reportedly found wet behind the bus stop by a citizen who realized they may contain sensitive information.
Last week, Russia claimed to have fired warning shots at HMS Defender as it went through the Black Sea.
The British Ministry of Defence, however, denied this, and added that the Russians were ‘undertaking a gunnery exercise’.
No warning shots have been fired at HMS Defender.
The Royal Navy ship is conducting innocent passage through Ukrainian territorial waters in accordance with international law.
— Ministry of Defence Press Office (@DefenceHQPress) June 23, 2021
Officials debated what Russia’s reaction to the HMS sailing near Crimea would be.
Negative Russian responses were anticipated, and an alternative route was also considered. But as it appears, an alternative would have suggested the United Kingdom was ‘scared/running away’.
“As the public would expect, the Ministry of Defence plans carefully. As a matter of routine, that includes analysing all the potential factors affecting operational decisions,” a spokesperson for the Ministry said.
The documents are also said to contain info on weapons exports, as well as details on the UK’s competition with European powers.
Almost all of the papers carried an ‘official sensitive’ marking, which is considered a low level of classification, recommending ‘where there is a clear and justifiable requirement to reinforce the ‘need to know’, the government says.
One document, however, was marked ‘Secret UK Eyes Only’, and is said to contain information about Britain’s military presence in Afghanistan.
An investigation is now undergoing to find out how the documents were lost.
