http://20committee.com/2013/09/04/snowden-nsa-and-counterintelligence/
By John R. Schindler
The XX Committee
September 4, 2013
Ever since the remarkable case of Edward Snowden broke into the limelight at
the beginning of the summer that’s now winding down, I’ve had a great deal to
say about it here, on Twitter, and on radio and television. As one of the very
few former NSA officers who’s in the public eye and willing to talk about
Snowden, I’ve had an audience. As a former NSA counterintelligence officer with
experience dealing with the Russians, I’ve been pretty much a solo act.
From nearly the outset I’ve stated that Snowden is very likely an agent of
Russian intelligence; this was met with howls of indignation which have died
down in recent weeks as it’s become apparent that Ed’s staying in Russia for
some time, along with whatever classified materials he had on his person.
(Since Glenn Greenwald’s partner when stopped by British authorities at
Heathrow had 58,000 highly classified documents on him, thanks to Ed, one can
only wonder how big the initial haul actually was.) That Snowden was in contact
with the Russian consulate in Hong Kong during his pre-Moscow visit there,
including spending his 30th birthday with his new friends, is now admitted.
Even President Vladimir Putin has conceded that Ed’s contacts with Russian
officials did not commence when he landed at Sheremtyevo airport, rather
before.
But when? That of course is the key question that NSA counterintelligence
surely wants – needs – to know. All roads here lead to Wikileaks. We know that
Snowden in late 2012 reached out to Glenn Greenwald and other members of the
spy-ring – all of whom can be considered cut-outs for Wikileaks when not
paid-up members – that stands behind the massive leaks. After making this
contact, Ed took a contractor job with Booz Allen Hamilton to increase his
access to NSA secrets. I’ve been stating for a while now that Wikileaks is
functionally an extension of Russian intelligence; it’s become a minor meme as
a few journalists have decided that such a scandalous viewpoint is worth
considering.
Of course, for anyone versed in the ways of Russian intelligence, the notion
that Wikileaks is a Moscow front that’s involved in anti-US espionage is about
as controversial as, say, the notion that the sun will rise in the east
tomorrow. Running false flags, creating fake activist groups, using Western
journalists and activists for deception purposes – this sort of thing is in the
DNA of Russian intelligence going back to the 19th century and is second nature
to them. They call espionage tradecraft konspiratsiya (conspiracy) for a
reason.
[...]
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