WikiLeaks Reveals Irish Political Secrets

Julian Assange may be held under house arrest in the English countryside, but that hasn’t stopped his organisation continuing to leak information that governments around the world would rather you didn’t hear.

Today the Irish Independent newspaper has begun publication of 1903 new US Embassy cables which relate to Ireland’s foreign policy and domestic affairs, obtained from WikiLeaks. “As you would expect, the language used in the cables… is diplomatic,” writes the newspaper. “But sometimes the mask slips a little, giving a telling insight into how the US State Department views Ireland, all set within the context of its own strategic interests.”

WikiLeaks has been publishing US diplomatic cables since 28 November 2010, although the publicity and controversy around them, and hence their impact, has declined over time. Perhaps that’s why Assange chose to hook up with the Irish Independent, the country’s largest selling daily newspaper, for this release.

The newspaper says that it established contact with Assange in March, and no money has changed hands with regard to the cables. “An arrangement was reached without fuss, essentially boiling down to an agreed understanding on the terms and condition of publication, including redacting, where necessary, the material and compliance with a security protocol to protect and handle the sensitive information at our disposal,” it says.

The ‘Ireland Cables’ will be published by the Irish Independent over throughout this week. Assange, meanwhile, remains under house arrest while he fights extradition to Sweden.