美俄安全機構商議斯諾登問題
Russia says its security agency is talking with its U.S. counterpart about American intelligence leaker Edward Snowden, but vowed that it would not expel him to the United States to face espionage charges.
Russia's presidential spokesman said Friday that officials from Moscow's FSB agency are in discussions with the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation, but gave no other details, other than to say that Snowden would not be handed over to American authorities.
The 30-year-old Snowden has been encamped for a month in the transit zone of Moscow's Sheremetyevo airport, while searching for a country that would grant him asylum so he could avoid returning to the U.S. to stand trial on the pending espionage charges. But his quick path out of the country was blocked after the U.S. revoked his passport.
The former U.S. intelligence contractor has asked Russia for temporary asylum but says he eventually wants to head to Latin America. The leftist governments of Venezuela, Bolivia and Nicaragua have offered him asylum.
Numerous news agencies in Russia reported Wednesday that Snowden was about to be handed documents that would have allowed him to leave the airport transit zone and formally enter Russia. But Snowden's Russian lawyer said that consideration of his case was taking longer than expected and that the fugitive would continue to live at the airport.
Snowden last month leaked secret details of telephone and Internet surveillance programs being conducted by the U.S.'s clandestine National Security Agency. The NSA says it is collecting the data to thwart terrorist attacks.
Snowden's disclosures have sparked a debate in Congress over the extent of the surveillance. But the House of Representatives this week narrowly defeated an attempt to curtail it, with supporters of the spying arguing that the data collection is necessary to protect the country.俄羅斯說，該國安全機構已經和美國對等部門就前美國國家安全局合同僱員斯諾登的相關事宜進行了磋商。不過，俄羅斯表示，不會將斯諾登引渡回美國接受間諜罪指控。
俄羅斯總統辦公室發言人星期五說，俄羅斯聯邦安全局和美國聯邦調查局正在進行磋商，但沒有就此透露更多細節。這位發言人表示，俄方不會將斯諾登交給美國。
今年30歲的斯諾登一直在莫斯科國際機場的轉機區滯留，並試圖向不同國家申請政治庇護，以免回國受審。由於美國政府吊銷了他的護照，使他難以離開俄羅斯。
斯諾登要求俄羅斯爲他提供臨時庇護，但表示他最終希望前往拉美。左翼人士執政的委內瑞拉、玻利維亞和尼加拉瓜已經表示要爲他提供庇護。
本星期稍早，曾有多家媒體報導說，斯諾登已經獲得必要的文件，可以離開機場正式進入俄羅斯。但斯諾登的律師說，該案的審議時間超過預期，斯諾登目前仍在機場滯留。
斯諾登上個月向外界泄露了美國國家安全局利用電話和因特網實施監控的計劃。美國國安部門聲稱，監控是爲了反恐。
斯諾登的泄密引發美國國會關於國安監控項目的辯論。不過，本星期衆議院以微弱多數的投票結果否決了削減監控項目的提案。監控項目的支持者說，這類項目收集的數據對於維護國土安全至關重要。
