Washington [US], April 20: Senators from both parties in the United States attended a closed-door session on April 19 and heard reports from Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines and officials from the Departments of Defense and State Department on the recent leak of classified documents.
According to Bloomberg, the MPs called for changes in the government's system of managing classified information. Republican Senator Marco Rubio, a senior member of the Senate Intelligence Committee, called the leak by the 21-year-old National Guard member astonishing. "I'm certainly not satisfied with the plans the administration has in place if it wants to prevent this from happening again in the future," Rubio said.
Jack Teixeira, who posted classified documents online, has been charged by the Ministry of Justice with illegally accessing and distributing classified national defense information. Documents that Teixeira posted online include sensitive information about the Russia-Ukraine conflict , revelations about the US wiretapping its allies.
"Perhaps there is a need to declassify (confidential information) and only the highest levels of the classification system, possibly a small group of people, should be allowed access," said Democratic Senator Mark Warner, Chairman of the Committee. Senate Intelligence Committee, proposed. He said MPs are preparing a bipartisan bill.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said MPs should consider a bill on the classification system and that improvements are needed, but did not elaborate.
Some other comments proposed limiting access to classified information and called for the administration of President Joe Biden to be held accountable for this incident. The White House is trying to explain how a young Guardsman had access to such classified information and was able to post it online for months undetected.
Speaking to reporters on April 19, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin explained that it is not unusual for someone of Teixeira's age to have access to sensitive information. "The vast majority of our military is young, so it's not unusual for a young person to take up important jobs in the military," Austin said, adding that the leaker had access to great information. Secret Service and is a computer specialist at the intelligence unit.
After the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, the US intelligence community encouraged information sharing to prevent threats. However, the concern now is that sensitive information is being shared too widely and there is a challenge in maintaining collaboration between intelligence agencies without risk. The Pentagon has been reviewing who has access to classified reports.
The US Air Force is also investigating Intelligence Unit 102 at Cape Cod, Massachusetts, where Teixeira belongs. This unit has been temporarily suspended from performing its duties.
Source: ThanhNien Newspaper