‘Pentagon leak does not constitute breach of trust’

According to US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken, the Pentagon leak, in which many classified military documents were leaked, did not cause a breach of trust between Washington and its partners. Reuters reported.

Blinken addressed the issue during a press conference in the Vietnamese capital, Hanoi, in which he said, among other things, that the United States has been discussing the issue with its allies for a long time. “I can’t see that our cooperation is in jeopardy from that,” Blinken said, adding that he applauded the steps Washington has taken now.

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The documents were leaked by 21-year-old Jack Douglas Teixeira of the US Air National Guard, who was charged yesterday with copying and distributing classified documents. He was arrested by FBI agents last Thursday.

WikiLeaks

The leak is one of the biggest security breaches in the US since the WikiLeaks scandal that exposed 700,000 diplomatic files. The Pentagon speaks of a “deliberate criminal act” while US President Joe Biden has launched an investigation into why Teixeira had access to sensitive information. For example, he had access to details about where Ukraine’s military weaknesses lay, exposing allied intelligence and embarrassing Washington.