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The United States demanded yesterday that Hong Kong officials hand over Edward Snowden on spying charges, warning that stalling could escalate tension between the two.
“If Hong Kong doesn’t act soon, it will complicate our bilateral relations and raise questions about Hong Kong’s commitment to the rule of law,” a senior Obama administration official said.
The stern extradition demand came a day after the United States charged Snowden, 30, a former National Security Agency contractor, with stealing government property and distributing classified information.
Snowden, who is in hiding in Hong Kong, is seeking legal representation from human-rights lawyers as he readies to fight his extradition, sources said.
He faces a maximum of 30 years in jail on three charges, including theft of government property, unauthorized communication of national defense information, and willful communication of classified communications intelligence to an unauthorized person, according to the criminal complaint filed Friday.
White House National Security Adviser Tom Donilon said the White House expects Hong Kong’s cooperation thanks to a 1998 extradition treaty under which many Americans have been sent home to face trial.
“We believe that the charges presented present a good case for extradition under the treaty,” he told CBS Radio News. “Hong Kong has been a historically good partner of the United States in law-enforcement matters, and we expect them to comply with the treaty in this case.”
Meanwhile, the South China Morning Post revealed early today that its scrutiny of intelligence provided earlier in the month by Snowden suggested additional US government attacks on Chinese computer networks — including at Tsinghua University.
Computers at the Hong Kong headquarters of Pacnet — which owns an extensive cable network that connects data centers in Japan, South Korea and elsewhere — were also hacked, the paper reported.
Allegations of hacking into the personal data of Chinese citizens could boost Snowden’s case for asylum in Hong Kong. The paper said he was not under police guard, and was in a “safe place.”
The Chinese government, which has the ultimate say over whether Snowden stays or goes, could make a persuasive legal argument for keeping him in Hong Kong if Snowden can back up his NSA-hacking allegation.
Chinese legal experts expect a drawn-out extradition battle that could take as long as five years to resolve.
China has demanded the United States explain Snowden’s accusations about the NSA, but has not yet commented on his status in Hong Kong. Under the city’s mini-constitution, Beijing is allowed to intervene in matters involving defense and diplomatic affairs.
An extradition order, if granted, could be appealed by Snowden. If he loses an appeal, the Chinese government could still deem it in their national-security interest to allow him refuge.
“Beijing would only intervene, according to my understanding, at the last stage,” said Martin Lee, a former Hong Kong politician and a founder of China’s Democratic Party. “If the magistrate said there is enough to extradite, then Mr. Snowden can then appeal.”
Beijing could decide at the end of the appeal process whether it wants Snowden extradited or not, he added. Revelations about Snowden’s security breaches came to light earlier this month when he recounted how the NSA and FBI gained access to Internet servers at Microsoft, Yahoo, Google and Facebook to monitor the Web traffic of people inside and outside the United States.
Since then, the FBI launched an investigation into Snowden, and the NSA announced that the secret PRISM program — aspects of which Snowden has revealed to the media — has resulted in thwarting 50 potential terrorist attacks since Sept. 11, 2001.
Meanwhile, Snowden has become popular in China.
One Chinese lawmaker, Leung Kwok-hung, has encouraged people in Hong Kong to “take to the streets to protect Snowden.”