Posted on 02/26/2004 9:44:42 PM PST by Pikamax
I was bugged by US, UK, France and Russia, says Butler
February 27, 2004 - 1:07PM
Former United Nations chief weapons inspector Richard Butler said today his office was bugged during private diplomatic conversations about the disarmament of Iraq.
Mr Butler, who is now the Tasmanian governor, made the claim after former British cabinet minister Clare Short said the British intelligence service had spied on UN Secretary General Kofi Annan.
The ABC has also reported British or United States intelligence services monitored former weapons inspector Hans Blix's mobile phone whenever he was in Iraq.
Mr Butler said he was confident his UN office in New York was bugged and he was forced to resort to walks in Central Park with contacts.
"Of course I was (bugged)," he told ABC radio.
"I was well aware of it, how did I know? Because those who did it would come to me and show me the recordings that they had made on others to help me do my job disarming Iraq.
"They would say 'we're just here to help you' and they would never show me any recordings they had made on me."
Mr Butler said he was bugged by the Americans, British, French and Russians.
"I knew it from other sources, I was utterly confident that I was bugged by at least four permanent members of the Security Council," he said.
"I was utterly confident that when in my attempts to have private diplomatic conversations trying to solve the problem of the disarmament of Iraq I was being listened to by the Americans, British, the French and the Russians and they also had people on my staff reporting what I was trying to do privately."
Mr Butler said if he wanted to have a conversation about sensitive material he would go elsewhere.
``If I really truly wanted to have a sensitive conversation with somebody ... including Iraqis or members of staff ... I was reduced to having to go either to a noisy cafeteria in the basement of the UN where there was so much noise around and then whisper ... or literally take a walk in Central Park,'' Mr Butler said.
``I would take a walk with a person in a park and speak in a low voice and keep moving so we could avoid directional microphones.''
Mr Butler said he did not believe the Australian government complained on his behalf about the spying as he had severed his ties with the country in his non-partisan role with the UN.
``I was under an oath to show no favour to any government and to take no instruction from any government ... it is exactly that fundamental deal ... that is threatened when you get activity like this.''
Mr Butler said the allegations of bugging in Mr Annan's office showed how dishonest international relations could be.
``It also imports into international relations a degree of dishonesty which quite frankly, if ordinary people knew how dishonest the game is they would mightily object,'' he said.
AAP
Some one reposted the story, but added a "ger" after "bug". Thus "bugged" became "buggered", etc. I couldn't stop laughing thinking about what that would do in this article:
"Of course I was (bugg*ed)," he told ABC radio.
"I was well aware of it, how did I know? Because those who did it would come to me and show me the recordings that they had made on others to help me do my job disarming Iraq.
"They would say 'we're just here to help you' and they would never show me any recordings they had made on me."
Mr Butler said he was bugg*ed by the Americans, British, French and Russians.
"I knew it from other sources, I was utterly confident that I was bugg*ed by at least four permanent members of the Security Council," he said.
Damn that was funny!
LOL, you gotta love it. Being tag-teamed by four nations at once.
...and the Pakistanis were bugging the Indians who were bugging the Chinese who were bugging the Israelis who were bugging Iranians who were bugging the British, French and Russians who were bugging Buttler...I can't imagine being a spook today. Everybody would bump into each other!
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