EUROPOL PRESS RELEASE: THE SECOND LEAK IS FAKE
Europol was able to trace the Wikileaks leak of ‘Minutes of the meeting on European security’ back to Russian Federation. Conclusive evidence that the leak originated from Russian Federation has been found. Europol also determined that the document was forged. It is unknown if this is the work of the Russian government or some third party, but the country of origin is not a surprise, based on the recent past. The first document is rumoured to have been leaked by the MI6.
Tensions have been high in the past week and leaked informations thoroughly rocked relations inside the European Union, as well as relations between the US and Europe. The first leak came from a secret informal meeting at the time of the state funeral of a former Italian president Giorgio Napolitano. It was highly unusual, firstly, for the European leaders to meet in this way. Secondly, some EU member states were not present, even though the subject matter involved them as well. The question is, are secret informal meetings a method that certain European countries are going to use in the future, or have indeed in the past?
Every indication points to the first leak being real, which still retains the controversy of the secret meeting from which it originated. It is rumoured that the first document was leaked by MI6 and that the reason for that was to undermine negotiations about EU defense policies and to prevent them to become a threat to the NATO alliance.
The second leak has now been confirmed that it came from Russia. It is believed that they tried to exploit the situation inflamed by the secret meeting and the leak that came from it. It has definitely had its consequences, as the mistrust resulting from the first leak and the informal meeting from which it originated, made EU countries, after the second leak came to light, cautious to trust countries rejecting its authenticity.
Clearly this caused mistrust within the EU itself, and between the US and European countries resulting in Trump's withdrawal of American troops from Europe, the implications of which are sure to be significant. It is yet to be seen however, how the revelation that the wikileak was fake will affect Trump's decision. And the question still remains, if the fact of the secret exclusive informal meeting will affect the relations and trust within the EU going forward.
