They report that secret documents about Russian nuclear facilities have been leaked

More than two million Russian military documents, found in a publicly accessible database, have reportedly come to light, exposing previously unknown details about the modernization and expansion of Russia's highly secretive nuclear complex.

This was reported Wednesday by the Danish investigative outlet Danwatch and the German newspaper Der Spiegel. If confirmed, it would be among the most serious leaks in the country's history.

Among the files, there are detailed plans of military facilities belonging to the Strategic Missile Forces located near Yasny, in Russia's Orenburg region. These bases house the hypersonic glide vehicle Avangard, considered one of the most modern nuclear launch systems Russia possesses.

"Until now, we've only been able to monitor these bases from above using satellite images," said Hans M. Kristensen, director of the Nuclear Information Project at the Federation of American Scientists, in statements to Danwatch and Der Spiegel.

"Now, with the help of these unique drawings, we can, for the first time, access the interior of the buildings and the underground depths. It's unprecedented," he added.

According to the aforementioned outlets, the documents reveal that in the past decade many of these nuclear facilities were demolished and then rebuilt with more advanced infrastructure. This includes hundreds of new buildings, command centers, watchtowers, and underground tunnels connecting different sectors of the bases.

The leak also contains construction plans, security diagrams, and details about interior signage, with messages such as "Stop! Turn around! Restricted area," "The Military Oath," and "Rules for footwear care."

The data includes information about electrical networks, computer systems, alarm configurations, sensor locations, and fortified structures prepared to withstand external threats. Recreational elements intended for soldiers deployed at the site are even detailed, such as gym equipment and board games like chess and checkers.

A massive leak of secret data

"Materials like this are the ultimate intelligence," said Philip Ingram, former officer of the United Kingdom Army intelligence corps. "If you can understand how electricity is conducted or where the water comes from, and you can see how the different elements in the systems are connected, you can identify strengths and weaknesses and find a weak point to attack," he explained.

Tom Roseth, associate professor of intelligence studies at the Norwegian Defence Command and Staff College, noted that having clarity about the scale of Russian efforts to modernize its nuclear facilities is of general interest, especially in light of the Kremlin's repeated nuclear threats since the start of the war in Ukraine.

"It's important that we have a correct understanding of the situation, because there are still many who do not fully recognize the situation Europe is in now, which represents an essential change in security policy," Roseth warned.

Despite the strengthening of military procurement regulations in Russia and the creation of a closed database of contracts, accessible only to authorized domestic contractors, it is reported that officials linked to the construction of defense infrastructure have continued attaching confidential documents to public tenders. Danwatch and Der Spiegel reportedly identified these classified plans in tenders in mid-2024.