Flashback>> Revealed: US dirty tricks to win vote on Iraq war (NSA Spying)

[sabra]

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

Revealed: US dirty tricks to win vote on Iraq war

Secret document details American plan to bug phones and emails of key Security Council members

Sunday March 2, 2003
The Observer


The United States is conducting a secret 'dirty tricks' campaign against UN Security Council delegations in New York as part of its battle to win votes in favour of war against Iraq.

Details of the aggressive surveillance operation, which involves interception of the home and office telephones and the emails of UN delegates in New York, are revealed in a document leaked to The Observer.

The disclosures were made in a memorandum written by a top official at the National Security Agency - the US body which intercepts communications around the world - and circulated to both senior agents in his organisation and to a friendly foreign intelligence agency asking for its input.

The memo describes orders to staff at the agency, whose work is clouded in secrecy, to step up its surveillance operations 'particularly directed at... UN Security Council Members (minus US and GBR, of course)' to provide up-to-the-minute intelligence for Bush officials on the voting intentions of UN members regarding the issue of Iraq.

memo here:

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

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

[Stephanie]

1. Totally forgot about that!

Thanks! I have to assume this was illegal, right?

[sabra]

2. I was just reading an article how the US MSM chose to ignore it

in '03, and make no reference to it now (with the new "revelations").

[liberal N proud]

3. When will the revelation that the bu$h regime spied on the Kerry

campaign be exposed?
That should be a thriller.

[sabra]

4. just hoping some one has the "guts" to leak the truth...

[Gregorian]

7. We should be so embarrassed.

To think a flunky cheerleader and some wealthy criminals could pull this off. Americans really have to be sleeping. Even my 80 year old dad knew the wars were coming, when Bush took office.

The list of crimes are too long. All we can do is get smart and take the bull by the horns.

We knew he was spying on Kofi.

/I just had to say something. We all know now how much we all hate these criminals. Next!

[FreedomAngel82]

9. I hope we find out

It wouldn't surprise me. This is way worse than Nixon and the Watergate DNC ordeal. Still bad but I think Bush has a goal of being ten times worse than Nixon in everything. :crazy:

[liberal N proud]

10. I think it is only a matter of time.

I know that the Kerry office I was volunteering at had the PC's stolen a couple of times.
It got to the point where the Sheriff was camped out outside the office to thwart the criminals.
If they were doing that to the local offices, and had the wire tap at their whim, you can be they used it. It was the first thing I thought of when the spy gate story broke

[robbedvoter]

5. And a good reminder it is! What a shameful behavior that was!

Almost as pathetic as Powell's showing his red a8 to the world and then telling people here that it was "credible" (people like Al Franken and lots of Democrats hang their complacency to war on that shameful act)

[Nictuku]

6. There are Terrorists in the United Nations???

OMG!!!

/sarcasm off

[FreedomAngel82]

8. Oh wow

I was listening last night to the Young Turks and they said that O'Donnell from the "West Wing" doesn't think they're spying on political opponents and maybe it's because of memo's like this. I still think they were spying on everyone who opposes them from quakers to senators.

[sabra]

11. O'Donnell is giving them too much of a benefit of the doubt

I on the other hand, have no doubt that they have...