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Knight to queen's bishop 3 - Snowden charged with espionage.
40hz:
The game is afoot!
This from ArsTechnica (link here)
NSA leaker Snowden granted entry to Russia
He has received transit papers, ending month-long limbo.
by Sean Gallagher - Jul 24, 2013 2:00 pm UTC
Edward Snowden, the former Booz-Allen contractor who leaked details of the National Security Agency's sweeping Internet surveillance programs, has been granted papers by the Russian government that allow him to leave the transit zone at Sheremetyevo International Airport, where he has resided in limbo since leaving Hong Kong a month ago. According to the Interfax news agency, Snowden received his papers this afternoon and is preparing to leave the airport. <more>
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UPDATE: The BBC is saying this announcement was premature and papers have not been issued to Snowden - so who knows what's going on right now?
:huh:
dr_andus:
This should allow him to walk into one of 3 Latin American embassies and claim asylum and get a travel document. But it still doesn't solve his logistical problem of how to get to the final destination, unless enough money has been raised for that charter flight and a suitable provider has been found.
Plus he will need some serious security escort while out and about in Moscow, to protect him from hostile security agencies, the media, and crackpots. I can't see how all that can be accomplished without active FSB assistance, in which case his moves will be seriously constrained (and channelled) by the Russians. He can basically only do what the Russians allow him to.
The Russians must have already decided whether it's to their advantage or disadvantage to keep Snowden in Moscow and/or in Russia until the G20 summit. So probably Snowden's next steps will play out within that framework...
Stoic Joker:
...to protect him from hostile security agencies, the media, and crackpots.-dr_andus (July 24, 2013, 11:32 AM)
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They have crackpots in Russia?? I thought that was an American thing.
40hz:
his moves will be seriously constrained (and channelled) by the Russians
-dr_andus (July 24, 2013, 11:32 AM)
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No surprise there. But that was always the case the minute he crossed into Russia anyway.
The Russians must have already decided whether it's to their advantage or disadvantage to keep Snowden in Moscow and/or in Russia until the G20 summit. So probably Snowden's next steps will play out within that framework...
-dr_andus (July 24, 2013, 11:32 AM)
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I'm guessing they'll want him gone since his presence will only create an unwanted news distraction once the G20 commences. And Russia desperately needs that meeting to go well to show they are still a player to be reckoned with on the international stage.
Of course, getting Snowden out of Russia without being too directly involved will be a significant challenge for Russia. Because sooner or later Snowden's plane will need to enter international airspace - at which point there will only be political considerations keeping the US from intercepting and forcing his flight to reroute. Most likely to an American base in Korea.
Putting him aboard a Russian government-owned diplomatic plane (with full advance public fanfare) might possibly work. But I doubt the Russians would want to force that sort of showdown in exchange for so little potential gain to themselves. Even the Russians know our president, like theirs, can only lose so much face and be pushed so far before his own government forces some sort of action action to be taken in response.
I somehow get the feeling what we're seeing now is pure "puppet theater." I strongly suspect some sort of brokered arrangement has already been made that will ultimately result in Snowden winding up in US custody without making the behind the scenes choreography too obvious.
Like the wicked witch said: "These things must be handled delicately..."
...otherwise it hurts the spell."
:o
dr_andus:
They have crackpots in Russia?? I thought that was an American thing.
-Stoic Joker (July 24, 2013, 12:06 PM)
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You'd be surprised how widely American crackpots travel. ;) Wasn't there a dude that swam right across a lake to Aung San Suu Kyi's house while she was under house arrest? Or the ones that keep popping up in North Korea and end up hanging out with the Supreme Leader... :)
I strongly suspect some sort of brokered arrangement has already been made that will ultimately result in Snowden winding up in US custody without making the behind the scenes choreography too obvious.
-40hz (July 24, 2013, 01:34 PM)
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It's not an impossibility, but I somehow doubt. It would reflect badly on Putin domestically, as there is strong popular support for helping Snowden. Plus it would send the wrong message to potential US defectors and whistleblowers, and even existing double agents. The FSB needs to show that you'll be looked after if you cross over to them. Russia is trying to differentiate itself as "better than the US" in some sense but if they hand him over, they lose that advantage.
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