[2][4][5] The targeted human intelligence was requested in a process known as the National Humint Collection Directive, and was aimed at foreign diplomats of US allies as well.
[5] Further leaked material revealed that the guidance in the cables was actually written by the National Clandestine Service of the Central Intelligence Agency before being sent out under Clinton's name, as the CIA cannot directly instruct State Department personnel.
[3][6] The disclosed cables on the more aggressive intelligence gathering went back to 2008, when they went out under Condoleezza Rice's name during her tenure as Secretary of State.
[8] According to a cable from the US embassy in Strasbourg, European human rights standards are "an irritant", and their champion, the Council of Europe, "is an organisation with an inferiority complex and, simultaneously, an overambitious agenda".
[10] After the election of Pope Benedict XVI, US diplomats recommended that the US Department of State seek to 'help shape his approach as he begins to grapple with the world beyond the Vatican's walls'.
WikiLeaks spokesman Kristinn Hrafnsson said with reference to the cable: "This further undermines claims made by the US Government that its embassy officials do not play an intelligence-gathering role."
[17] A series of cables show how US diplomats and senior politicians intervene on behalf of Boeing to help boost the company's sales.
[18][19] Employees of DynCorp, a US government contractor funded by U.S. tax dollars, in Afghanistan paid for the services of underage "dancing boys", apparently a euphemistic reference to Bacha bazi, which is considered child prostitution.
[22] The boys were auctioned off to be sexually abused by Afghan policemen, with some to be kept as sex slaves and participate in events funded by DynCorp.
[27] In the aftermath of the decision, the Norwegian Deputy Defense Minister said it would be 'very helpful' if the US government were to confirm there had been no political pressure to buy the plane.
[28][29] McDonald's attempted to pressure the U.S. government to stall the implementation of the Dominican Republic–Central America Free Trade Agreement until El Salvador appointed "neutral judges" in a $24 million lawsuit against the company in 2006.
undergoing discussion in the Russian State Duma proposes a National Payment Card System to collect all credit-card fees for domestic transactions.
Foreign Affairs Minister Lawrence Cannon had earlier promised a tongue-lashing for the hero's welcome that Libya extended to a man convicted in the 1988 Lockerbie bombing.