NATO Chief Slams Cyberattacks On Ukraine's Government, Assures Kiev Of 'Strong Support'

Muhammad Irfan Published January 14, 2022 | 11:42 PM

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg condemned on Friday cyberattacks on the Ukrainian government websites and announced the upcoming signing of an advanced NATO-Ukraine cybersecurity cooperation agreement

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 14th January, 2022) NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg condemned on Friday cyberattacks on the Ukrainian government websites and announced the upcoming signing of an advanced NATO-Ukraine cybersecurity cooperation agreement.

Earlier in the day, Ukrainian Foreign Ministry spokesman Oleg Nikolenko said the websites of the ministry and some other government agencies were down due to malicious cyberactivities. The website of the education ministry displayed a message about an alleged leak of personal data of Ukrainians onto the internet.

"I strongly condemn the cyber attacks on the Ukrainian Government. NATO has worked closely with Ukraine for years to help boost its cyber defences," Stoltenberg said.

Stoltenberg added that NATO experts in Brussels have been exchanging information on the cyberattacks with their Ukrainian colleagues.

"In the coming days, NATO and Ukraine will sign an agreement on enhanced cyber cooperation, including Ukrainian access to NATO's malware information sharing platform. NATO's strong political and practical support for Ukraine will continue," Stoltenberg said.

The Polish Foreign Ministry also condemned the cyberattacks against Ukraine.

"We are concerned about the reported cyber attack on the Ukrainian government websites, including the MFA @MFA_Ukraine. We strongly condemn all actions that result in spreading disinformation and disrupting the functioning of government institutions," ministry spokesman Lukasz Jasina tweeted.

The Ukrainian State Service of Special Communication and Information Protection later said that most of the websites had been restored and personal information not disseminated. The service called the attack the worst in the past four years.