HOUSE_OVERSIGHT_019663.jpg
1.54 MB
Extraction Summary
8
People
5
Organizations
3
Locations
2
Events
3
Relationships
3
Quotes
Document Information
Type:
Book page / proof (page 175)
File Size:
1.54 MB
Summary
This document appears to be a page (175) from a book manuscript, likely 'How America Lost Its Secrets' by Edward Jay Epstein (indicated by the filename 'Epst_' and ISBN). It details the diplomatic fallout between the US and Russia caused by Edward Snowden's defection, specifically the cancellation of a summit between Obama and Putin. It also discusses the intelligence value Snowden provided to Russia and his subsequent changing narrative regarding whether he brought classified files with him. The document bears a House Oversight Committee Bates stamp.
People (8)
| Name | Role | Context |
|---|---|---|
| Sergey Lavrov | Russian Foreign Minister (implied by 'rov' and context) |
Spent six months negotiating with Hillary Clinton's State Department; was warned about Snowden.
|
| Hillary Clinton | Secretary of State (Former) |
Her State Department was negotiating a summit with Russia.
|
| Barack Obama | U.S. President |
Planned summit with Putin; viewed Snowden's defection as an unfriendly act.
|
| Vladimir Putin | Russian President |
Weighed the choice between a summit with Obama and the intelligence coup of harboring Snowden.
|
| Edward Snowden | Intelligence Defector / NSA Contractor |
Subject of the text; fled to Hong Kong then Russia; claimed to have NSA files.
|
| Anatoly Kucherena | Lawyer/Spokesman for Snowden |
Made comments regarding documents Snowden brought to Russia; appeared on a show.
|
| Sophie Shevardnadze | Show Host |
Hosted a show where Kucherena appeared.
|
| James Risen | Journalist (The New York Times) |
Interviewed Snowden over the internet on October 17.
|
Organizations (5)
| Name | Type | Context |
|---|---|---|
| State Department |
Negotiated summit; issued warnings to Russia regarding Snowden.
|
|
| NSA |
National Security Agency; source of files Snowden claimed to possess.
|
|
| CIA |
Central Intelligence Agency; former officer quoted regarding defector protocols.
|
|
| The New York Times |
Newspaper that published James Risen's interview with Snowden.
|
|
| House Oversight Committee |
Implied by the Bates stamp 'HOUSE_OVERSIGHT'.
|
Timeline (2 events)
Mid-June (Year implied 2013)
Cancellation of planned summit between Obama and Putin due to Snowden affair.
Russia (Planned)
October 17 (Year implied 2013)
Snowden's first interview with a journalist since arriving in Russia.
Russia (Snowden) / Internet
Locations (3)
| Location | Context |
|---|---|
|
Destination of Snowden; location of Olympic Games.
|
|
|
Location where Snowden was in contact with Russian officials before defecting.
|
|
|
Country of origin for Snowden and the intelligence agencies involved.
|
Relationships (3)
Putin weighed the intelligence upside of Snowden against diplomatic relations.
Negotiating a one-on-one summit.
Interview exchange over the Internet.
Key Quotes (3)
"No country, not even the United States, would grant sanctuary to an intelligence defector who refused to be cooperative"Source
HOUSE_OVERSIGHT_019663.jpg
Quote #1
"That's not how it works."Source
HOUSE_OVERSIGHT_019663.jpg
Quote #2
"Snowden Says He Took No Secret Files to Russia"Source
HOUSE_OVERSIGHT_019663.jpg
Quote #3
Full Extracted Text
Complete text extracted from the document (2,244 characters)
The Keys to the Kingdom Are Missing | 175
rov, had spent almost six months negotiating with Hillary Clinton's State Department a one-on-one summit between President Obama and President Putin. Not only would this summit be a diplomatic coup for Russia, but also it would add to Putin's personal credibility in advance of the Olympic Games in Russia. In mid-June, after U.S. intelligence reported to Obama's national security adviser that Snowden was in contact with Russian officials in Hong Kong, the State Department explicitly told Lavrov that allowing Snowden to defect to Russia would be viewed by President Obama as a blatantly unfriendly act. As such, it could (and did) lead to the cancellation of the planned summit. Putin knew the downside of admitting Snowden.
But if Snowden had a large archive of files containing the sources of the NSA's electronic interceptions, as Snowden claimed he had in Hong Kong, there was an enormous potential intelligence upside. Putin had to choose between the loss of an Obama summit and an intelligence coup. Would Putin have made the choice he did if Snowden had destroyed, or refused to share, the stolen data?
"No country, not even the United States, would grant sanctuary to an intelligence defector who refused to be cooperative," answered a former CIA officer who had spent a decade dealing with Russian intelligence defectors. "That's not how it works." If so, it seems plausible to believe that, as Kucherena said, the documents Snowden brought to Russia explain why Russia exfiltrated him from Hong Kong and provided him with a safe haven.
The Quickly Changing Narrative
Three weeks after Kucherena's appearance on Shevardnadze's show, on October 17, Snowden had his first interview exchange with a journalist since his arrival in Russia. It was over the Internet with James Risen of The New York Times, as noted earlier. Snowden now asserted a very different narrative. The subsequent front-page story, which carried the headline "Snowden Says He Took No Secret Files to Russia," reported that Snowden claimed he gave all his documents to journalists in Hong Kong and brought none of them to Russia. He
Epst_9780451494566_2p_all_r1.z.indd 175 9/29/16 5:51 PM
HOUSE_OVERSIGHT_019663
HOUSE_OVERSIGHT_019663
Discussion 0
No comments yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this epstein document