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John Bolton on Fox News is one of many extremely upset over the release of Wikileaks. In his interview, he goes on to state that the most devastating effects of the release will be that people will not want to talk to the US anymore, citing the release of the Saudi King's statement (now public) that he wanted to "cut the head of the snake" in Iran, among others.
This is complete hogwash.
Frequently, and especially when it comes to the Middle East, foreign leaders are not talking with the US State Dept to reminisce or tell jokes; they do so because they NEED to communicate with the US Government. They NEED to ask for weapons and generally make their case heard: they need to warn us (about enemies that also happen to be their own enemies), give their feedback on strategy, etc.
These politicians need to give us information that will help them (and us), and possibly disinformation that will help them.
And after the release of these Wikileaks documents? Well, they will still NEED to communicate with the USG in the EXACT SAME WAY. If Yemen needs to order a missile strike against Al Qaeda in Yemen, do you think they will hesitate? Of course not. Do you think the Saudi King will NOT give his opinion about Iran to us if he sees our strategy is not working? Of course not.
Given the leaks, these politicians will INSIST that their communication is confidential, and I guarantee the State Dept. has already taken steps to only show certain (most?) cables to the proper channels instead of the 2 million(!!) USG employees that had access to them before in the US military and others inside the USG. And given that these new steps will insure more confidentiality...leaders will again be able to make frank comments to State Dept. Will it take longer for others to trust State Dept? Probably, but as soon as they have information they need to tell, or information they need for us to tell them, they will be FORCED to communicate.
Here's an analogy: credit cards are stolen all the time, yet we still continue to use them and vendors continue to accept them.
In 2005, TJMaxx had 45 MILLION credit cards exposed...and I bet you the NEXT DAY shoppers used credit cards at TJMaxx. Why? Because they didn't have a check and wanted to purchase the goods, and they trusted that TJMaxx had implemented tighter security.
In 2009, 7-Eleven had millions of credit card numbers stolen; do you think people still use credit cards at 7-Eleven, or is the trust "broken forever" for all consumers? Ridiculous.
Foreign leaders need to talk to the State Dept, and we need to talk to them. This leak will never change that need, so State Dept will have to ensure leaders with their new security measures how the communication is confidential.
And today...leaders are talking to State Dept.
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