On Monday, Ukraine announced the discovery of microphones in the office of the assistant commander of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Valery Zaluzhny the next day. detection of a listening device in the office of the head of the army, reports AFP. At the same time, regarding the device discovered in his office, Zaluzhny said that this room had not been used for a long time and was unlikely to record any state secret, the Ukrainian head reported to RBC Ukraine on December 18. The Independent also reports.

The incident comes amid media reports of rising tensions between Zaluzhny and President Volodymyr Zelensky amid the failure of a counteroffensive launched by Kyiv forces this summer and an erosion of Western support nearly two years after the Russian invasion began. .

“The interception equipment has been installed in the office premises designated for the work of the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and his staff,” the statement of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine states.

It is about “two offices, the commander-in-chief and assistants,” a source close to the case told AFP.

This device was discovered during a “planned inspection”, the General Staff reported.

For his part, Zaluzhnyi assessed on Monday that no classified information would have been disclosed with the help of the discovered equipment. “I don’t think so,” he assured.

According to the general, the listening device was discovered in the room where he was supposed to go on Monday morning.

“I have several places where I work. This happened at one of them. I haven’t been there in a while,” he said in the video.

Zaluzhny confirmed that not only his office was affected, while noting that the incident did not take place at the headquarters of the Ukrainian army.

“I haven’t worked there in a long time,” he added.

When asked how he sees this incident, Zaluzhnyi answered simply: “like a war.”

The purpose of this operation will be determined by the investigation, he promised.

The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) on Sunday announced the opening of an investigation into the fact of “illegal use of special technical means to obtain information.”

At this stage, no clues have been given as to the origin of this listening device.

As the commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Valery Zaluzhnyi, under the leadership of President Volodymyr Zelenskyi, determines the general course of hostilities at the front.

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