Russia May Have Helped Snowden Leak
Some U.S. lawmakers are suggesting that Edward Snowden was encouraged to leak classified information by Russian intelligence officials.
House Intelligence Committee Chairman Rep. Mike Rogers (R-MI) described Snowden as a “thief who we believe had some help” during an interview on NBC’s Meet The Press. Asked to elaborate by host David Gregory, Rogers responded, “Some of the things that he did were beyond his technical capabilities… I believe there’s a reason he ended up in the loving arms of an FSB [Federal Security Service of the Russian Federation] agent in Moscow.”
Rogers said that many of the files Snowden downloaded were entirely unrelated to privacy concerns, and questioned why Snowden had a “go bag” ready and how he made his travel arrangements so quickly. “I don’t think that’s a coincidence. I don’t believe it was a gee-whiz-luck event that he ended up in Moscow under the handling of the FSB,” he said.
Senate Intelligence Committee Chairwoman Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) was more coy on the subject. “He may well have,” she responded when asked if she believed Russia had a hand in the leaks. “We don’t know at this stage. But I think to glorify this act is to set a new level of dishonor.”
