The US Department of Defense has denied allegations that it provided intelligence on the locations of Russian generals in Ukraine in order to liquidate Ukrainians.

Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said the United States was supplying Ukrainian forces with military intelligence to help defend its country, but that Ukraine was "deciding for itself whether and which Russian general will be the target or not."

"We do not provide intelligence on the location of senior military leaders on the battlefield, nor do we participate in decisions about the combat objectives of the Ukrainian army," Kirby said.

"Ukraine combines the information we and other partners provide with the intelligence it collects on the battlefield. "Then they make their own decisions and take their own actions."

Earlier, the White House National Security Council condemned as "irresponsible" the New York Times report that the United States had assisted Ukraine in the assassination of 12 senior Russian generals.

"The United States is providing intelligence on the battlefield to help Ukrainians defend their country," said NSC spokeswoman Adrian Watson. "We are not providing intelligence with the intention of killing Russian generals," she added.