Whistleblower Edward Snowden's security leaks could cost the U.S. military billions of dollars, according to the United States’ top general.
Speaking on Thursday before the House Armed Services Committee, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Martin Dempsey, said: “I suspect it could cost billions of dollars to overcome the loss of security that has been imposed on us.”
Dempsey said that the Pentagon has established an interagency task force to determine precisely what information Snowden was able to take and find ways to minimize the repercussions. Its task will take roughly two years, he said.
“That's the magnitude of this challenge.”
Snowden, a former National Security Agency contractor, leaked a large cache of classified information which exposed widespread intelligence-gathering programs run by the United States, both domestically and abroad.
englishnews@aa.com.tr
