MESSAGE
| DATE | 2013-06-25 |
| FROM | Ruben Safir
|
| SUBJECT | Subject: [NYLXS - HANGOUT] what is the government doing?
|
What the hell is this President doing chasing this idiot around the
world in such a public manner, as if there is really national security
issues at stake here:
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887323683504578566823289925626.html
By RICHARD SILK, EVAN PEREZ and ADAM ENTOUS
The Chinese government shot back at the U.S. Tuesday, labeling as
groundless Washington's statements that Beijing's conduct regarding
former U.S. security contractor Edward Snowden had hurt trust-building
efforts between the two countries.
Paul Sonne reports from Moscow on former NSA contractor Edward Snowden's
absence from an Aeroflot flght from Moscow to Havana on which there was
a seat booked in his name, and efforts to find him. Photo: Getty Images
Snowden on the Run
U.S. authorities sought to catch Edward Snowden before he reached his
next goal: political asylum in Ecuador.
View Graphics
Tensions over the former National Security Agency leaker came to a boil
Monday as the White House ripped into Hong Kong and China and issued
warnings to Russia and Ecuador, where Mr. Snowden has sought asylum,
sharply dialing up global pressure for his return to face espionage
charges.
In a daily press briefing on Tuesday in Beijing, China Foreign Ministry
spokeswoman Hua Chunying said the Chinese territory of Hong Kong had
acted in accordance with the law when Mr. Snowden left Hong Kong on
Sunday.
"The accusations against the Chinese government are groundless," she
said.
"It is unreasonable for the U.S. to question the Hong Kong government's
handling of affairs in accordance with the law," she added.
On Monday in the U.S., U.S. officials suggested that China had hurt
efforts to build trust between the countries. "The Chinese have
emphasized the importance of building mutual trust," said White House
spokesman Jay Carney. "And we think that they have dealt that effort a
serious setback. If we cannot count on them to honor their legal
extradition obligations, then there is a problem."
Justice Department officials formally asked Hong Kong on June 15 for Mr.
Snowden's arrest, a day after they filed a three-count criminal
complaint under seal in federal court in Alexandria, Va., against the
former National Security Agency contractor.
The case of Mr. Snowden has become a test of Washington's ability to
influence unsympathetic governments. Having failed after weeks of work
through international legal channels, the U.S. has turned to an
aggressive diplomatic strategy.
President Barack Obama, Secretary of State John Kerry and officials at
the White House and Justice Department took turns asking for Mr.
Snowden's return to the U.S. amid warnings that relations would be
strained.
Enlarge Image
image
image
Agence France-Presse/Getty Images
Secretary of State John Kerry said it would be 'very disappointing' if
Hong Kong or Russia had advance notice of Edward Snowden's travel plans
and still allowed him to board an airplane to Moscow.
China was singled out for particular criticism after Mr. Snowden
unexpectedly left Hong Kong on Sunday for Moscow in defiance of a U.S.
demand for his extradition.
U.S. officials implied that Beijing scuttled what had been a steadily
advancing process of establishing a case that would lead to extradition
proceedings.
U.S. officials said talks were under way with Moscow, and that they
thought the Russians were taking the matter "seriously."
While they warned of unspecified "repercussions," administration
officials on Monday stopped short of identifying actions the U.S. might
take against governments that refused to comply.
Officials in Ecuador said Mr. Snowden has applied for asylum, and they
are considering the request. If he ends up there, the tiny Latin
American country—which last year granted asylum to WikiLeaks founder
Julian Assange, who is holed up in Ecuador's London embassy and working
to aid Mr. Snowden—could feel the most direct brunt of U.S.
displeasure.
The U.S. is Ecuador's most important trading partner, accounting for
$10.7 billion, or 43%, of its total exports. But a key U.S. trade
preference measure expires next month, and U.S. lawmakers could
retaliate by refusing to renew it, administration officials said.
With U.S.-Russian talks under way, American officials declined to
specify possible U.S. action against Moscow. International experts said
the U.S. could pressure Russia before the World Trade Organization,
where it has been a member for about a year, over trade policies. U.S.
officials also could try to press Russia over sanctions related to Iran
or Syria.
Enlarge Image
image
image
Agence France-Presse/Getty Images
Ecuador's foreign minister, Ricardo Patino, said his country is
analyzing an asylum request from Mr. Snowden.
The U.S. also could act in areas it knows would irritate China and
Russia: moving ahead with a global missile defense expansion, or taking
new steps to enlarge international groups such as the North Atlantic
Treaty Organization or the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.
U.S. officials acknowledge they have limited leverage with Moscow. U.S.
officials acknowledge they have limited leverage with Moscow. In private
talks, the U.S. has held out the possibility of unspecified greater
cooperation with Russia in the future if it helps Washington in the
Snowden case, officials said.
Most likely, however, the U.S. will continue a drumbeat of criticism of
these nations for failing to honor commitments to cooperate with other
nations. Harsher steps are seen as a threat to other U.S. priorities for
which it needs Russian and Chinese help: to contain the Syrian civil
war, North Korea's provocations and Iran's nuclear program.
Mr. Snowden's case has Cold War overtones and brought old rivals face to
face. Moscow hasn't made clear its role in Mr. Snowden's global odyssey.
A spokesman for Russian President Vladimir Putin said Monday that
questions about Mr. Snowden were a matter for Russia's Ministry of
Foreign Affairs, which didn't respond to numerous requests for comment.
Enlarge Image
image
image
Reuters
Russian policemen stand outside the embassy of Ecuador in Moscow.
Poll
Vote: Should Hong Kong Have Held Him?
Russian authorities were mum on Mr. Snowden's whereabouts. Russia's
state-controlled Channel 1 carried an ironic report about "Finding Mr.
Snowden," highlighting journalists' failed efforts to locate the
fugitive.
Mr. Assange said during a news conference from London that Mr. Snowden
was being aided by the WikiLeaks organization and was destined for
Ecuador. Mr. Assange said during a news conference from London that Mr.
Snowden was being aided by the WikiLeaks organization and was destined
for Ecuador. Reports in Russian media said he was awaiting a flight to
Cuba, where he would seek transit to Quito, Ecuador. There are no direct
flights from Moscow to Quito. But Mr. Snowden wasn't on a plane bound
for Havana for which Russian news outlets said he had booked a ticket.
Mr. Carney said U.S. officials were in contact with governments of
countries Mr. Snowden reportedly has been considering as a destination.
President Obama, asked whether he had spoken with Mr. Putin, said: "What
we know is that we're following all the appropriate legal channels and
working with various other countries to make sure that rule of law is
observed."
Edward Snowden is on the run from Hong Kong, with supporters saying he
will seek political asylum in Ecuador. The WSJ’s Jake Lee discusses
China’s motives for letting him go and the implications for
U.S.-China relations.
Further Reading
Capital Journal: In Snowden Case, Obama Sees Coldblooded China,
Russia
Waiting for Snowden: Dozens of Journalists Hop Fruitless Flight to
Havana
Birthday Pizza, Then Hasty Exit
How Extradition Fell Apart
Wikileaks Details Aid to Snowden
Ecuador Considers Snowden's Asylum Request
Snowden Alleges U.S. Hacking in China
Relief, Disappointment as Snowden Leaves Hong Kong
Related Video
Feds Probe Firm That Vetted Snowden
Snowden Sounds Off on Obama, China, Tech
Seib & Wessel: The Snowden Affair
U.S. officials defended the Justice Department's handling of
negotiations with Hong Kong. Justice Department officials formally asked
Hong Kong on June 15 for Mr. Snowden's arrest, a day after they filed a
three-count criminal complaint under seal in federal court in
Alexandria, Va.
A U.S. official briefed on the discussions said Justice Department
lawyers consulted with Hong Kong authorities in tailoring the three
charges to meet the guidelines of a treaty between the two countries:
theft of government property; unauthorized communication of national
defense information; and willful communication of classified
communications intelligence.
On June 19, Attorney General Eric Holder contacted his counterpart in
Hong Kong, "stressing the importance of the matter and urging Hong Kong
to honor our request for Snowden's arrest," said Mr. Carney.
Last Friday, Hong Kong asked for more information, U.S. officials said.
"We were in the process of responding to the request when we learned
that Hong Kong authorities had allowed the fugitive to leave Hong Kong,"
Mr. Carney said.
Neither Mr. Carney nor other officials would say what they believed
happened. But they rejected as an explanation for Hong Kong's action any
technical problem with their request.
"We are just not buying that this was a technical decision by a Hong
Kong immigration official," said Mr. Carney about Mr. Snowden's flight
from Hong Kong on Sunday. "This was a deliberate choice by the
government to release a fugitive despite a valid arrest warrant, and
that decision unquestionably has a negative impact on the U.S.-China
relationship."
Two of the three U.S. charges against Mr. Snowden are espionage-related.
As such, they pose problems for any U.S. attempt to seek a "red notice"
from Interpol, the international police agency, which could have sought
an arrest in all 190 member countries. Interpol's rules don't allow
arrest warrants for political matters, under which espionage charges
would fall.
The U.S. updated Interpol's databases to show that Mr. Snowden's
passport had been suspended, one U.S. official said. Another U.S.
official said the U.S. never sought a "red notice" or felt it needed one
in part because American officials were in negotiations with Hong Kong
and believed that involving the international police agency wouldn't be
necessary.
A published account Monday said Mr. Snowden admitted he sought out his
position at contractor Booz Allen Hamilton to gather evidence about NSA
surveillance programs.
"My position with Booz Allen Hamilton granted me access to lists of
machines all over the world the NSA hacked," he said in a June 12
interview, the South China Morning Post reported. "That is why I
accepted that position about three months ago."
Mr. Snowden has said he leaked documents from the agency to shed light
on a program to collect metadata from U.S. telephone
companies—information about phone calls, though not the content of
the calls—and another operation aimed at monitoring online
activities of non-U.S. residents.
Ecuador's foreign minister, Ricardo Patino, at a news conference in
Hanoi, Vietnam, described Mr. Snowden's request for asylum as one based
on "freedom of expression and with the security of citizens around the
world."
—Olga Razumovskaya, Paul Sonne, David Román, Jared A. Favole,
Rajesh Roy and Mukesh Jagota contributed to this article.
|
|
