The Koza Memo - WH Ordered UN spying

[DoYouEverWonder]

I sure hope so.

If you haven't heard yet there is another huge scandal brewing with more information coming out daily about the bugging of UN officials before the Iraq War. However, the media is presenting this has a British scandal, when in truth, this is a scandal that goes straight to the WH.

Here's a copy of the memo that started it all:



http://observer.guardian.co.uk/iraq/story/0,12239,905954,00.html

Sunday March 2, 2003

To:
From: FRANK KOZA, Def Chief of Staff (Regional Targets)
CIV/NSA
Sent on Jan 31 2003 0:16
Subject: Reflections of Iraq Debate/Votes at UN-RT Actions + Potential for Related Contributions
Importance: HIGH
Top Secret//COMINT//X1

All,

As you've likely heard by now, the Agency is mounting a surge particularly directed at the UN Security Council (UNSC) members (minus US and GBR of course) for insights as to how to membership is reacting to the on-going debate RE: Iraq, plans to vote on any related resolutions, what related policies/ negotiating positions they may be considering, alliances/ dependencies, etc - the whole gamut of information that could give US policymakers an edge in obtaining results favorable to US goals or to head off surprises. In RT, that means a QRC surge effort to revive/ create efforts against UNSC members Angola, Cameroon, Chile, Bulgaria and Guinea, as well as extra focus on Pakistan UN matters.

We've also asked ALL RT topi's to emphasize and make sure they pay attention to existing non-UNSC member UN-related and domestic comms for anything useful related to the UNSC deliberations/ debates/ votes. We have a lot of special UN-related diplomatic coverage (various UN delegations) from countries not sitting on the UNSC right now that could contribute related perspectives/ insights/ whatever. We recognize that we can't afford to ignore this possible source.

We'd appreciate your support in getting the word to your analysts who might have similar, more in-direct access to valuable information from accesses in your product lines. I suspect that you'll be hearing more along these lines in formal channels - especially as this effort will probably peak (at least for this specific focus) in the middle of next week, following the SecState's presentation to the UNSC.

Thanks for your help

[Jackpine Radical]

1. So apparently the US media have this story set on

IGNORE. Maybe in a couple of years Frontline will do a story about it & all 9 viewers will be properly incensed at our little spy game.

[berry]

2. I remember when this came out, just before the attack on Iraq.

I think the Guardian broke the story, but soon it was all over the world. Except the US. Here, the story got almost no mention. But I think it angered a lot of the countries on the UNSC.

Katherine Gun was the one who leaked it--and now she is off the hook in the UK. They were probably trying to keep the story from exploding when they stopped her prosecution, but it was (I hope) too late.

I actually don't have a lot of hope for this getting any real attention in the US this time around either. I did see a short report (CNN I think, but maybe MSNBC) where the reporter said "shocking, shocking that spying should be going on" (not exact quote, here), in a now cliched reference to the movie Casablanca. The cynical point being: "don't all sophisticated people know that the US (and the UK apparently) bugs the whole UN? This is nothing new, nothing surprising." So that's the media message--"don't be so naive, this isn't shocking at all".

What WE have to ask (about this as well as so many other things)is: "Where's the outrage?" Luckily, I do think the Democrats are beginning to ask this. So maybe that will have to be reported by the media, and so it may not be lost...

[DoYouEverWonder]

3. Your memory serves you well

This is a link to the original article that you referred to:

http://observer.guardian.co.uk/iraq/story/0,12239,905936,00.html


Yes everyone spies on everyone if they can. However, the difference this time is that the orders came directly from the WH and this may be the first time we have the memo to prove it.

[Name removed]

4. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[tom_paine]

5. What does whether the UN is good and honorable matter a whit?

And I don't think anyone is saying that, although standing next to the Busheviks, it certainly does make them look so by comparison.

Kind of like if I want to look thin I'll go stand in the center of some 600 lb. fat people.

Having said that, and EVEN ignoring the criminality of this act, how fucking birdbrain STUPID is it to spy on the people who are voting for a resoultion which is as trumped up as Hitler's War Decalaration Against Poland as they ae voting on it.

You'd think that the Busheviks would try to avoid pissing the very people whom they depended on for international cover for their phony little invasion (in which 550 brave soldiers have already died for the Bush Election Effort and little more while Emperor Bunnypants* has not goner to one funeral.

Yeah, you'd think.

So, even ignoring the ethical aspects of it (and yes, spying on the UN Security Council is a little different than traditional embassy-based Spook Jobs), the sheer stupidity of it is astonishing.

The Stupidity and arrogance. Oh, the stupidity and arrogance. I recognize it. It was the last time America was ruled by an arrogant foolish bunch of Aristocrats.

Their leader, back in 1776, was ALSO King George.

There are many reasons why this was a bad and foolish idea, not to mention a customarily (for the Imperial) criminally corrupt one.

[DoYouEverWonder]

6. It's not just the spying

it the fact that the orders to do the spying came from the WH and that the reason for issuing those orders was to manipulate an UN vote for an illegial war. Otherwise, it's no big deal.

[nannygoat]

7. So you would be ok with the UN bugging the White House

if they could? It all comes back to what is right and ethical. Two things highly lacking in the current misadministration...

[tom_paine]

8. Yeah, sure he would

He's VERY Fair Und Balanced...