U.S. intelligence requires secrecy

Steve Yuen, Las Vegas

Monday, Dec. 6, 2010 | 2:05 a.m.

Regarding Bob Jack’s Thursday letter to the editor, headlined “New access to truth is an upshot of WikiLeaks”:

I take exception to Mr. Jack stating that, as a result of the latest round of WikiLeaks, “there is some consolation in knowing that the deep, dark secrets of the political elite are in front of everyone to observe.”

This is not about how the Food and Drug Administration studies and deliberates on new foodstuffs and drugs. This is about a main pillar of U.S. national security that must necessarily lack transparency: conducting U.S. foreign policy based on, as well as complementing, U.S. defense posture and intelligence activities.

The U.S. State Department interacts with U.S. embassy and consular staff on a 24/7 basis to obtain raw data, analyses and judgments on personalities and events, as well as deliver directions. Do you think the North Koreans would love to publish contents of their diplomatic cables or how they obtained foreign assistance to manufacture nuclear bombs?

“The Art of War,” written by Sun Tzu in ancient China some 2,500 years ago and part of the curriculum in many military academies all over the world, contains this remarkable statement: “If you know yourself and your enemy, you will win many battles.”

The latest round of WikiLeaks has diminished the trust of the moderate governments in the Middle East in U.S. leadership to prevent Iran from producing nuclear bombs that could not only wipe out Israel, but also intimidate Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Egypt, the United Emirates, Bahrain and Iraq into submission.

In addition, WikiLeaks revealed that the former premier of Singapore had stated the Chinese deputy foreign minister had said that Beijing had indeed considered giving up North Korea. The leaks have served to reduce the number of options available for Beijing to restrain Pyongyang.