Mysterious #Vault7: What Secrets is WikiLeaks Due to Release? – Sputnik International

The mysterious "Vault 7" continues toarouse public curiosity.

WikiLeaks, an international non-profit organization that publishes news leaks and classified information, started releasing cryptic questions about "Vault 7" onTwitter onFebruary 4, 2017.

The riddle has prompted speculation amongsocial media users asto what exactly WikiLeaks was going toexpose this time. Some users suggested that it would be explosive revelations aboutthe 9/11 terror attacks inNew York City, while others opined that the international organization is aboutto leak a new portion ofHillary Clinton's emails.

WikiLeaks Exposes CIA's Meddling inFrench Presidential Election

A video released byAnonymous Scandinavia onTwitter hinted atthe possibility that something "big" is likely tosurface onFebruary 19.

"WikiLeaks asked what Vault 7 was, where Vault 7 was, and when is Vault 7. While the world waits forthe 'why' and 'who', we assume that the answer asto 'when' is onFebruary 19," the video said.

However, it was onFebruary 16 when Julian Assange tweeted aboutthe US Central Intelligence Agency's meddling inthe French presidential election back in2012.

"My new story: the CIA conducted a 10-month espionage operation targeting the last French presidential election," Assange wrote onhis brand new Twitter account.

According toCIA documents published byWikiLeaks, the US intelligence service officially ordered its agents topenetrate all the major political parties inFrance aswell astheir electronic systems beforethe country's 2012 presidential election.

Speaking toRadio Sputnik onSunday, veteran journalist Diana Johnstone said that this operation was obviously part ofa broader pattern.

"We know that the United States and the CIA inparticular are notorious forintervening inelections all overthe world. There is nothing surprising aboutthat," Johnstone remarked.

The unconfirmed claims regarding Russia's alleged interference intothe 2016 US election have immediately paled incomparison withthe large-scale cyber campaign launched bythe CIA againstFrance a few years ago.

The Flynn Scandal and Clinton's Aides' Alleged Meeting With the Chinese Ambassador

Meanwhile, onFebruary 19 WikiLeaks turned the spotlight onHillary Clinton's national campaign chairman John Podesta, whose emails it released last October.

One such email said that back inJanuary 2016 Chinese Ambassador tothe US Cui Tiankai sought "an informal, private, offthe record get-together" withthe Clinton campaign's top aides "to discuss the next year and the current state ofUS-China affairs."

Predictably, this email has taken ona new significance amidthe scandal overDonald Trump's former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn's alleged contacts withRussian Ambassador Sergei Kislyak.

However, tothe disappointment ofmany, neither WikiLeaks nor Assange have released anything explosive comparable tothe Iraq War Logs or the Podesta emails.

So, is the "Vault 7" mystery overhyped?

REUTERS/ Courtesy of WikiLeaks

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange holds up his new kitten at the Ecuadorian Embassy in central London, Britain, in this undated photograph released to Reuters on May 9, 2016

'We Open Governments': WikiLeaks' 'Vault 7' Exposures

Sputnik got intouch withCharles K. Ortel, an investigative journalist and renowned Wall Street analyst and investor, todiscuss this issue.

"I am happy totry answering your questions withthe caveat applying toeach ofmy answers that I am joining you inmaking educated guesses I have no connection, direct or indirect, withWikiLeaks or withanyone connected toWikiLeaks," Ortel responded toSputnik.

AP Photo/ Carolyn Kaster

"Under President Obama, the United States government and elements connected toit intervened inopenly expressing preferences concerning candidates and issues inforeign elections and referenda," the Wall Street analyst pointed out.

Donald Trump's victory was a bolt fromthe blue forHillary Clinton's supporters fromboth Democratic and Republican camps, prompting some ofthem toclaim that elements connected with "the Russians" had stepped into intervene inthe election.

"As a guess, WikiLeaks knows precisely who leaked the Podesta emails and that this source was not Russia or elements connected toRussia," Ortel said.

"Moreover, asa guess, WikiLeaks (and others) have obtained all ofthe missing Hillary Clinton emails and may have obtained emails found inOctober 2016 onAnthony Weiner's laptop computer. If so, WikiLeaks has much valuable information it could choose toshare ona schedule ofits own choosing," he suggested.

"If Vault 7 is a reference tothe 7th Floor atthe US State Department (which it may or may not be), then it is possible that the forthcoming release will document more intervention inforeign elections and referenda and show previously unseen communications and deliberations involving US government personnel, possibly including Hillary Clinton, her aides, and other members ofthe Obama Administration," Ortel noted.

According tothe analyst, it is also possible that WikiLeaks may release heretofore unseen communications explaining how the Clinton Foundation came tobe re-organized afterJanuary 20, 2009 when the Obama administration acquired the ability tounderstand how the Foundation and its affiliates operated outsidecompliance withapplicable state, federal and foreign laws fromOctober 23, 1997 when it was founded onwards.

"To me, the release of 'Vault 7' seems a natural progression inthe evolution ofWikiLeaks," Ortel noted, "and I should add that no credible person has argued that the Podesta emails, forexample, or other releases are forgeries, so their record is noteworthy and any additional releases should be taken seriously and reviewed carefully."

AFP 2016/ Brendan Smialowski

Clinton advisers Jake Sullivan (L), Nick Burns (2L) and John Podesta (2R) wait with Clinton Campaign Chairman, Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton for a meeting with Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko on September 19, 2016 in New York.

Ecuadorian Elections: 'Vault 7' and Julian Assange's Future

Is it possible that the Vault 7 campaign was aimed atdrawing attention toJulian Assange amidthe Ecuadorian election, which took place onFebruary 19?

"Julian Assange may lose protection fromextradition that is afforded bythe Government ofEcuador, depending uponnational elections inprogress there, so your suggestion is certainly possible," the Wall Street analyst responded.

REUTERS/ Suzanne Plunkett/Files

However, the election is due togo toan April runoff betweenthe candidate fromthe Left, Lenin Moreno, and Lasso. That means that Assange's future is hanging inthe balance.

Can we assume that Assange postponed the much-discussed leak tothe time ofthe April runoff?

"I suspect that the next set ofWikiLeaks papers may drop earlier thanthis coming April if they are extensive, they may need many days todisseminate this information tothe general public," Ortel said.

'Vault 7' and Upcoming 2017 Elections inEurope

The Wall Street journalist believes that the forthcoming leaks would have something todo withEurope's 2017 elections inFrance, the Netherlands and Germany.

The release ofthe CIA's files concerning the 2012 French election could have been an appetizer.

"Watching the reaction inFrance, I suspect that WikiLeaks may wish tohave Vault 7 spread particularly toother nations scheduled tohold elections and referenda during2017," Ortel highlighted.

AP Photo/ Manuel Balce Ceneta

"I think Wikileaks has evolved tobecome a serious force and there is no doubt that powerful governments and individuals have positive and negative reasons toconsider intervening innational elections (and inthe affairs ofmulti-lateral grant-making government entities) so educating the general public concerning potential corruption and influence peddling is truly a welcome service," he said.

Ortel pointed outthat those who operate withingovernments using secrets have a paramount duty, underthe US Constitution, toobey laws, and toprotect secrets.

"Concerning the Podesta emails, what WikiLeaks shows us is rampant, so far unprosecuted criminality particularly withregard tosoliciting and spending funds inthe supposed care ofthe Clinton Foundation, and evident failures toprotect secrets, some ofwhich held commercial value (as well asbeing classified atthe highest levels)," the analyst stressed.

So should we expect more fromthe much discussed "Vault 7" campaign?

"Given its long record, and recognizing that WikiLeaks has become bigger thanJulian Assange alone, I fully expect more releases," Ortel emphasized.

The views expressed inthis article are solely those ofthe author and do not necessarily reflect the official position ofSputnik.

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Mysterious #Vault7: What Secrets is WikiLeaks Due to Release? - Sputnik International