Snowden's travels raise concerns of foreign involvement

[struggle4progress]

Jun. 23, 2013
by Richard Wolf
USA TODAY

... "It is pretty clear that someone has helped him engineer his escape from Hong Kong," said Bruce Riedel of the Brookings Institution, a former CIA, Pentagon and National Security Council official. "The Snowden affair has gone from a question of being a leaker to a question of high politics among the world's major powers" ...

"This kid is a pawn in a global power play," said former congresswoman Jane Harman, head of the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars. "He's being used to embarrass us and to send messages to us" ...

http://www.lansingstatejournal.com/usatoday/article/2450577

[dkf]

1. Thank wiki leaks. It really is that simple.

[struggle4progress]

2. Snowden's Hong Kong lawyer suspects China role in exit

A Hong Kong legislator revealed Monday he had acted as Edward Snowden's lawyer, and said he suspected Beijing orchestrated the former CIA agent's departure which allowed him to evade the grasp of US authorities ...

Albert Ho .. said Snowden received a message several days ago from a figure who advised him to leave and said he would be given safe passage.

"Someone who claimed to represent the government... notified him through a middleman," he said, adding that the figure did not indicate whether he represented Hong Kong or Beijing.

"I have reasons to believe that ... those who wanted him to leave represented Beijing authorities," Ho told reporters, adding that Hong Kong officials he contacted were unable to tell him anything about the offer ...

http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/news/afp/130624/snowdens-hong-kong-lawyer-suspects-china-role-exit

[struggle4progress]

3. Washington urges Russia to return Snowden to US

... "Given our intensified cooperation after the Boston Marathon bombings and our history of working with Russia on law enforcement matters -- including returning numerous high-level criminals back to Russia at the request of the Russian government -- we expect the Russian government to look at all options available to expel Mr. Snowden back to the US to face justice for the crimes with which he is charged," said National Security Council spokesperson Caitlin Hayden.

Hayden also expressed disappointment with Hong Kong for allowing Snowden to leave "despite the legally valid US request to arrest him for purposes of his extradition under the US-Hong Kong Surrender Agreement.

"We have registered our strong objections to the authorities in Hong Kong as well as to the Chinese government through diplomatic channels and noted that such behavior is detrimental to US-Hong Kong and US-China bilateral relations," she said ...

http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/news/afp/130624/washington-urges-russia-return-snowden-us

[struggle4progress]

4. China says it respects HK government's handling of Snowden case

BEIJING | Mon Jun 24, 2013 3:22am EDT

(Reuters) - China said on Monday that it respects the Hong Kong government's handling of the case of fugitive former U.S. spy agency contractor Edward Snowden in accordance with Hong Kong law.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying was responding to a question about whether China was involved in the decision for Snowden to leave Hong Kong.

Hua also said at a regular briefing that China is gravely concerned about Snowden's allegations of U.S. hacking attacks on China ...

http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/06/24/us-usa-security-china-hk-idUSBRE95N07H20130624

[struggle4progress]

5. China outsmarted US in Snowden affair, experts say

Monday, 24 June, 2013
Updated: 4:00PM
Agence France-Presse in Beijing

... Hong Kong political analyst Johnny Lau said he believed that Chinese representatives “must have drained him in depth and exhausted him (for intelligence) before letting him go”.

As for Hong Kong’s role, Lau argued that the local government was a pawn with Beijing guiding the pieces.

“Hong Kong is just part of a chess game. It was the same when it was part of Britain,” he told AFP ...

http://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/1267875/china-outsmarted-us-snowden-affair-experts-say

[struggle4progress]

6. Russia defiant as U.S. raises pressure over Snowden

By Lidia Kelly and James Pomfret
MOSCOW/HONG KONG
Mon Jun 24, 2013 12:57pm IST

(Reuters) - ... "Ties are in a rather complicated phase and when ties are in such a phase, when one country undertakes hostile action against another, why should the United States expect restraint and understanding from Russia?" said Alexei Pushkov, the head of the foreign affairs committee in the lower house of parliament.

Pushkov does not speak for the Kremlin and is not a policy maker, but is an ally of President Vladimir Putin.

The lawmaker suggested Russia could consider granting asylum for Snowden if he required it, but it looked as if he would prefer to go to "other countries like Venezuela or Ecuador".

A spokesman for Putin said on Sunday the Russian leader was not aware of Snowden's location or plans. Russian leaders have not sought to draw attention to Snowden's arrival ...

http://in.reuters.com/article/2013/06/24/usa-snowden-travel-idINDEE95N00Q20130624

[ConcernedCanuk]

12. Putin is not one to mess with

.
.
.

and neither are the leaders of China -

and a few other countries that are getting pissed at the USA's military presence in their backyard.

Sooner or later, these countries will form their own coalition - the USA will be it's target.

USA would have to make a major change in it's military stance, apologize, compensate for damages etcetera to prevent an all-out attack on the USA.

USA ain't gonna change.

You can figure it out.

Shitstorm is coming.

CC

[struggle4progress]

14. I can't do anything useful with that analysis: the only political consequence of promoting it

would be to strengthen doctrines that the US must increase military spending in order to remain prepared to fight a multifront war on a global scale

[ConcernedCanuk]

21. "prepared to fight a multifront war on a global scale"

.
.
.

OR

Back off and leave the World alone?

Also, USA is in debt up to it's eyeballs

The way the USA is operating is not sustainable.

Even us Canucks, although we are not involved too much militarily around the globe, are shooting ourselves in the foot with our tar sands mess, among other things.

Us North Americans are in for a rude awakening - and I don't think it's too far off.

When we stumble, the ones we've trod on for the last few hundred years are gonna kick our asses.

They are watching,

and waiting.

CC

[Dash87]

15. That's pretty ridiculous. None of these countries want any type if war.

As for the US, it's hemorrhaging power anyways. A change in its military stance is going to be forced by its inability to maintain power.

[ConcernedCanuk]

19. "None of these countries want any type of war" - you are correct.

.
.
.

But they are ready . . .

CC

[Bonobo]

7. How long before he is accused of sexual misconduct?

I am sure they are hoping to find something...maybe plant some kiddie porn!

[dixiegrrrrl]

8. I like the way you have all the info on one page...thanks!

Yep, USA has egg on its face.
Justifiably so.
And since Snowden is no longer a citizen, he is free to wander where he wants, with no US restrictions.

[struggle4progress]

10. Snowden is not a US citizen? Since when?

[DevonRex]

13. She mistakenly believes that revocation means loss of citizenship.

Here is the authority for revocation.
http://www.uscis.gov/ilink/docView/22CFR/HTML/22CFR/0-0-0-1/0-0-0-2898/0-0-0-3451.html#0-0-0-721
http://www.uscis.gov/ilink/docView/22CFR/HTML/22CFR/0-0-0-1/0-0-0-2898/0-0-0-3335.html#0-0-0-755

Passports are routinely revoked when an extradition request has been made. That's because the person will be coming back here. Unless they're traitors selling national security information to China and Russia.

[dixiegrrrrl]

20. Yeah, I goofed.

Thanks for the clarifying info, also...

[DevonRex]

22. Easy to do. Those regs are hell. You have to read them backwards

just for that revocation authority.

[struggle4progress]

9. Plane for Cuba Leaves Russia, but Snowden Is Not on Board

By ELLEN BARRY, PETER BAKER and DAVID M. HERSZENHORN
Published: June 24, 2013

... Edward J. Snowden ... did not leave Moscow on a planned flight to Havana ... Mr. Snowden’s vacant seat on the Havana flight raised the possibility that the Russian government had detained him, ... perhaps to question him for Russia’s own purposes. The authorities in Hong Kong said Mr. Snowden boarded an Aeroflot flight to Moscow’s Sheremetyevo airport that arrived on Sunday afternoon. But he was never photographed in Hong Kong and has not been seen publicly or photographed since his reported arrival in Moscow. Arriving passengers on that flight, interviewed at the airport, said they could not confirm that he had been aboard ... Security was extremely tight at the gate at Sheremetyevo airport on Monday as agents called passengers to board the Havana-bound Aeroflot aircraft. Police officers stood around the plane on the tarmac, and the entrance to the gate inside the terminal was cordoned off with about 25 feet of blue ribbon ... A police officer asked a member of the ground crew if everyone had arrived. The reply was: “Minus five” ...

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/25/world/edward-snowden-nsa-surveillance-leak.html

[struggle4progress]

11. ... A Twitter feed, @Snowdensseat, was soon set up in the name of seat 17A with messages such as:

“Getting a lot of angry looks from journalists around me. Deadlines probably looming. Also, no booze served” ... An email was soon doing the rounds suggesting Snowden could yet show up on the plane. It contained a link suggesting the Airbus A330-200 may have a crew rest area below the flight deck where he could hide ...
By Reuters
Published: June 24, 2013
Reporters fly to Cuba without Snowden

[Dr Fate]

16. Anyone connected to China is evil.

Unless it is a DEM congeressman who accepts donations from a corporation, errr, I mean "person" who creates jobs there OR a DEM President who borrows millions from them.

OR a DUer who invests in and buys things from companies owned by or made in China- I am fine with that too.

Hell, how are we supposed to borrow money from them unless we send them some more jobs?

Other than that, they are evil and we should have NOTHING to do with them.

[struggle4progress]

17. I heard that arguing with people on the internet can cause brain damage

[Dr Fate]

18. Then it's a good thing you did not offer an argument.

I'd hate to cause any harm.