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Secrecy and Security News

Newer News: May 2001

April 2001

• CIA Must Stop Sitting on Historical Briefings by J.R. Labbe, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, April 26. "A progressive erosion of open government and First Amendment rights continues, all in the name of 'national security' as defined by government officials."
• Press Briefing on Opening of CIA Records under Nazi War Crimes Disclosure Act, press release, April 23. The Nazi War Crimes Interagency Working Group will hold a briefing April 27 on the release of newly declassified CIA files on 20 leading Nazi figures.
• Pentagon Press Briefing: Excerpt on Secrecy of U.S. Surveillance Flights, April 19. "Why should that be secret? ... Who are you keeping the information from?"
• U.S., China Show Plane Videos by Robert Burns, Associated Press, April 19. "It's dueling videos," said Steven Aftergood of the Federation of American Scientists. "There obviously is a battle for public perception going on."
• Some See Double Standard in China Flap by Indira A.R. Lakshmanan with John Donnelly, Boston Globe, April 18. "As US and Chinese officials met today to negotiate the return of an $80 million US plane and the future of spy flights, a nagging question remained unanswered: What would the United States do if the shoe were on the other foot?"
• Washington Cites Shortage of Linguists for Key Security Jobs by Diana Jean Schemo, New York Times, April 16. "National security officials are warning of critical shortages in their ability to understand the languages of other nations, and so unravel their secrets."
• Spy Missions to Go On Despite Plane Collision by Lynn Sweet, Chicago Sun-Times, April 15. "Tensions after the United States-China plane collision won't stop the Pentagon from eavesdropping on the world's hot spots."
• Investigation Finds No Bias Against Asians in U.S. Labs by James Glanz, New York Times, April 14. But "There are severe limitations on the scope of this investigation, which I would say undercut its conclusion," said Steven Aftergood, director of the project on government secrecy at the Federation of American Scientists."
• Dozens of Nations Fly Spy Aircraft by Nancy Benac, Associated Press, April 11. "This kind of surveillance can enhance stability between countries that are not hostile to one another," said Steve Aftergood of the private Federation of American Scientists. "It can aggravate tensions between countries that are in conflict."
• Spying on China Is Essential to U.S. Security, Analysts Agree by Keay Davidson, San Francisco Chronicle, April 8. "U.S. spying on China is essential to track developments in that unsettled part of the world, a diverse array of independent national security analysts agrees."
• President Bush on Freedom of Information, at the ASNE Annual Convention, April 5. "My administration will cooperate fully with freedom of information requests if it doesn't jeopardize national security, for example."
• Navy Crew Should Have Been Able to Destroy Tapes, Some Equipment by Rogers Worthington, Chicago Tribune, April 5. "If American crew members managed to destroy sensitive data and software aboard the Navy surveillance craft on Hainan Island, Chinese intelligence analysts would be unlikely to emerge with anything that could seriously damage future U.S. intelligence."
• Senator Moynihan Urged a Pardon for Samuel Loring Morison, letter to President Clinton, September 29, 1998 (released 29 March 2001). "What is remarkable is not the crime, but that he is the only one convicted of an activity which has become a routine aspect of government life: leaking information to the press..."
• Both Nations Face Threat of Political Aftermath by Scott Canon, Kansas City Star, April 3. "The collision of a Chinese fighter jet and a U.S. spy plane over the South China Sea is more evidence of chilling relations between Washington and Beijing, analysts say."
• Congressional Hearing on Daniel M. King Espionage Case, press release from the King defense team, April 3. "The defense disclosed a series of demonstrably false statements made to the media and Congress by the Navy in the aftermath of the case."

Older News: March 2001

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