Not quite. He's actually an MI6 agent. (Go here and scroll down.) Apparently, Rycroft -- Matthew Rycroft -- has been stationed in Geneva, Paris, Washington and Sarajevo.
Did I just pull a Rove? No -- although arguably, whoever cobbled together the afore-cited website revealed more than may be permitted by British law. Actually, the real outing was conducted by whoever leaked the memo.
And who might that be? Thirteen individuals are listed on the memo itself, including Rycroft. No other copies were made, due to the sensitivity of the material.
I offer two clues:
1. The leaker took care to identify Rycroft as a "foreign policy aide," thereby offering him some cover and (presumably) allowing him to continue to function as a spy. I suggest that only someone within British intelligence would be so thoughtful.
2. The thirteen names include "C" -- a.k.a. Sir Richard Dearlove, head of MI6. Dearlove plays a key role within the memo itself:
C reported on his recent talks in Washington. There was a perceptible shift in attitude. Military action was now seen as inevitable. Bush wanted to remove Saddam, through military action, justified by the conjunction of terrorism and WMD. But the intelligence and facts were being fixed around the policy. The NSC had no patience with the UN route, and no enthusiasm for publishing material on the Iraqi regime's record. There was little discussion in Washington of the aftermath after military action.The phrases "But the intelligence and facts were being fixed around the policy" and "There was little discussion in Washington of the aftermath..." are the most damning to be found in the document.
Did Dearlove leak the material? I wouldn't bet the rent money on it, but I'd bet a nice lunch. And if the head of MI6 tried to wedge a knife between W's shoulder blades -- well. That is an interesting development.
A quirky tradition demands that C must write all his memos in green ink. I like to think that somewhere in London, there's a notepad filled with the emerald words: "SCREW BUSH. SCREW BUSH. SCREW BUSH."
(Thanks to a reader for catching this. I won't identify said reader, although he may want to introduce himself in the comments section.)
4 comments:
OK I admit it. It was me :-)
Meanwhile, I posted some stuff here about Boris Berezovsky and Neil Bush
a while back.
A current case to watch is the ongoing discussion between Russian and British authorities about Berezovsky and
Akhmed Zakayev, both of whom have been granted 'asylum' in Britain.
Some asylum! Berezovsky accompanies Neil Bush to eastern Europe
(admittedly that part of eastern Europe which is in the EU) with
impunity. And Zakayev's place of residence was no impediment to his being appointed to the 'rebel' Chechen cabinet alongside Shamil Basayev, the
butcher of Beslan. These figures are being protected by the British authorities in a greater sense than simply being protected from extradition to stand trial in Russia.
The charity called 'Islamic Relief', referred to in this article in the Guardian, smells like a UK spook front...
Berezovsky is very powerful. No sh*t. But so are those who control the Russian FSB. I doubt that Berezovsky will ever spend a day in prison. But...if the Russian authorities publish more information, at the same time as indictments are served in Washington...it might not be fun for the Bush gang. Here's hoping their troubles mount up.
Man there is alot of comment spam I have noticed. Is there any way to remove it from the blogs?
Great post, I enjoyed reading it.
Adding you to favorites, Ill have to come back and read it again later.
Great post, I enjoyed reading it.
Adding you to favorites, Ill have to come back and read it again later.
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