White House condemns document release
White House condemns document release
Whistle-blowing website Wikileaks has released 250,000 secret messages sent by US embassies which give an insight into current American global concerns.
They include reports of some Arab leaders including Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah urging the US to attack Iran and end its nuclear weapons programme.
Other concerns include the security of Pakistani nuclear material that could be used to make an atomic weapon.
The widespread use of hacking by the Chinese government is also reported.
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is referred to as "Hitler" while President Nicolas Sarkozy of France is called a "naked emperor" in the documents.
The documents also say that North Korean leader Kim Jong-il suffers from epilepsy, Libyan leader Muammar Gaddhafi's full-time nurse is a "hot blonde".
The German Chancellor is referred to as Angela 'Teflon' Merkel and Afghan President Hamid Karzai is "driven by paranoia", the documents claim.
US officials referred to Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin as an "Alpha Male," while President Dmitry Medvedev is "afraid, hesitant."
The leak came minutes after Wikileaks claimed that it was under cyber attack on Sunday ahead of the expected release of thousands of secret documents.
Despite the glitch, five international news outlets The New York Times, The Guardian in England, and newspapers and magazines in three other European nations which had obtained the documents ahead of time published details of the leaked documents on their websites.
US condemns
The US government has condemned the release of state department documents.
"President Obama supports responsible, accountable, and open government at home and around the world, but this reckless and dangerous action runs counter to that goal," a White House statement said.
u00a0
"We condemn in the strongest terms the unauthorised disclosure of classified documents and sensitive national security information."
What it says
The leaked US embassy cables also reportedly include accounts of:
ADVERTISEMENT
Iran attempting to adapt North Korean rockets for use as long-range missiles
US officials being instructed to spy on the UN's leadership
The very close relationship between Russian PM Vladimir Putin and his Italian counterpart Silvio Berlusconi
Alleged links between the Russian government and organised crime
Criticism of UK politicians including Prime Minister David Cameron
Subscribe today by clicking the link and stay updated with the latest news!" Click here!
