有报道说,美国总统川普在白宫椭圆形办公室向俄罗斯高级官员泄密了高度机密信息,美国国家安全顾问麦克马斯特等其他政府官员对报道的准确性予以驳斥。
麦克马斯特星期一傍晚在白宫院子里对记者说,源于华盛顿邮报的这篇报道是“假的”。他说:“总统没有谈论情报的来源和收集方法,也没有透露尚未公开的军事行动。”
他还说:“我当时在场。他没泄密。” 说完这句话后,麦卡马斯特没有回答记者的提问,转身回到白宫西翼办公楼。
国务卿蒂勒森也支持麦克马斯特的说法,称他自己也参加了5月10日川普同俄罗斯外长和大使的那次会见。蒂勒森在声明中说,当时“讨论了广泛的内容,包括反恐方面的共同努力及威胁”。
一些美国新闻机构报道说,川普总统在椭圆形办公室与俄罗斯外长拉夫罗夫以及俄罗斯驻美大使基斯里亚克的那次会见中,透露了被认为是高度机密的信息。
华盛顿邮报报道说,川普炫耀了自己掌握的有关航空业面临迫在眉睫威胁的内部信息。
纽约时报报道,川普透露的是被认为及其敏感的情报,甚至在美国政府内部或者与其他盟国也还没有广泛分享。
这两份报纸和其他媒体进一步报道认为,川普透露的情报可能会伤害关于伊斯兰国的那些情报的来源以及收集方法。
美国总统有权把几乎任何情报解密,所以川普的做法并不构成刑事犯罪。但接受媒体采访的情报官员担心,由美国伙伴国政府提供的这些情报被泄露,可能伤及重要的双边关系。
美国之音联系了中央情报局和国家安全局,但是二者都拒绝置评。
U.S. National Security Adviser H.R. McMaster and other members of the Trump administration have denied the accuracy of published reports that the president revealed highly classified information to Russian officials in the Oval Office.
The original story, first reported by the Washington Post, “is false,” McMaster told reporters on the White House grounds late Monday. “At no time were intelligence sources or methods discussed and the president did not disclose any military operation that was not already publicly known,” he added.
“I was there. It didn’t happen,” McMaster concluded, then turned around and re-entered the West Wing without answering reporters’ questions.
Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, who said he also attended the May 10 meeting with the Russian foreign minister and Russian ambassador, backed up McMaster’s characterization of the conversation, adding in a statement that “a broad range of subjects were discussed, among which were common efforts and threats regarding counter-terrorism.”
Several U.S. news organizations reported that the president, in the Oval Office meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Ambassador Sergey Kislyak, disclosed information considered highly classified.
Trump appeared to be boasting about inside knowledge of a looming threat to aviation, according to the Washington Post.
The New York Times reported that the information, which was deemed to be especially sensitive, had not even been shared widely within the U.S. government or shared with other allies.
The two newspapers, and others, further said the information could jeopardize a critical source of intelligence about Islamic State and the manner in which it was collected.
A U.S. president has the power to declassify nearly any information, so what Trump did does not appear to be illegal. But intelligence officials, quoted by the newspapers, expressed concern that the information, provided by a U.S. partner government, could harm crucial relationships.
The Central Intelligence Agency and National Security Agency declined immediate comment when contacted by VOA.