Tuesday 18 January 2011

Reuters: US has exaggerated WikiLeaks damage


Reuters reports that internal U.S. government reviews have determined that the mass leak of diplomatic cables by WikiLeaks caused only limited damage to U.S. interests abroad, despite the Obama administration's public statements to the contrary.

It says: "A congressional official briefed on the reviews said the administration felt compelled to say publicly that the revelations had seriously damaged American interests in order to bolster legal efforts to shut down the WikiLeaks website and bring charges against the leakers.

" 'I think they just want to present the toughest front they can muster,' the official said".

"But State Department officials have privately told Congress they expect overall damage to U.S. foreign policy to be containable, said the official, one of two congressional aides familiar with the briefings who spoke to Reuters on condition of anonymity.

" 'We were told (the impact of WikiLeaks revelations) was embarrassing but not damaging,' said the official, who attended a briefing given in late 2010 by State Department officials."

Via GregMitch on Twitter

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