Wikileaks began on Sunday November 28th publishing 251,287 leaked United States embassy cables, the largest set of confidential documents ever to be released into the public domain. The documents will give people around the world an unprecedented insight into US Government foreign activities.
The cables, which date from 1966 up until the end of February this year, contain confidential communications between 274 embassies in countries throughout the world and the State Department in Washington DC. 15,652 of the cables are classified Secret.
The embassy cables will be released in stages over the next few months. The subject matter of these cables is of such importance, and the geographical spread so broad, that to do otherwise would not do this material justice.
The cables show the extent of US spying on its allies and the UN; turning a blind eye to corruption and human rights abuse in "client states"; backroom deals with supposedly neutral countries; lobbying for US corporations; and the measures US diplomats take to advance those who have access to them.
This document release reveals the contradictions between the US’s public persona and what it says behind closed doors – and shows that if citizens in a democracy want their governments to reflect their wishes, they should ask to see what’s going on behind the scenes.
Every American schoolchild is taught that George Washington – the country’s first President – could not tell a lie. If the administrations of his successors lived up to the same principle, today’s document flood would be a mere embarrassment. Instead, the US Government has been warning governments -- even the most corrupt -- around the world about the coming leaks and is bracing itself for the exposures.
The full set consists of 251,287 documents, comprising 261,276,536 words (seven times the size of "The Iraq War Logs", the world's previously largest classified information release).
The cables cover from 28th December 1966 to 28th February 2010 and originate from 274 embassies, consulates and diplomatic missions.
Go to Wikileaks Cablegate to download and search the cables for yourself
or visit The Guardian for their analysis and guide to the documents.
Comments
US orders crackdown over leaked cables
The US is ordering a crackdown on security and will aggressively pursue anyone who's responsible for the largest ever leak of classified government information.
One American politician even wants WikiLeaks declared a foreign terrorist organisation.
But there's more to come with internet whistleblower WikiLeaks promising a steady drip feed of leaked diplomatic cables and documents.
The Secretary of State Hillary Clinton says there is nothing laudable or brave about leaking the information which she described as an attack not only on the US but on its international partners as well.
http://www.abc.net.au/am/content/2010/s3080037.htm
Re: Wikileaks - Secret US embassy cables released
Looks like a lot of rotten eggs on faces. However, it rather obscures, namely "diplomatic celebrity gossip".
But we are open for more relevant leaks about the $$$ spent on corrosive, corrupt and outright anti human rights issues. That would be more than egg on faces, but possibly shackles on war criminals.
And I agree with Hillary Clinton, that would really damage the elites, haha...
Wiki Blowback
It´s not just that but also a transnational incentive for the perpetrators to flock together across rivaling interests and isolate themselves from the rest of us. Among these now suddenly engaging in active distraction is the binge drinking governor from the geographical center of Europe who has psychiatrised tax investigators that attempted to scrutinize banks, handpicked police commanders, and had the "Andenpakt" conspiracy hold the conservative party hostage to label Arab bribes as Jewish inheritances. The sunlight is closing in on the totalitarianism of democracy.