STATEROOM is thecode name of a highly secretivesignals intelligence collection program involving the interception of international radio, telecommunications and Internet traffic. It is operated out of thediplomatic missions of the signatories to theUKUSA Agreement and the members of theECHELON network including Australia, New Zealand, United Kingdom, Canada and the United States.[1][2]
In almost 100 U.S. embassies and consulates worldwide, Stateroom operations are conducted by theSpecial Collection Service (SCS), a unit that is jointly operated by theCentral Intelligence Agency (CIA) and theNational Security Agency (NSA).[3]
According to documents leaked byEdward Snowden, the true mission of Stateroom personnel is generally not revealed to the rest of the diplomatic staff at the facilities where they are assigned.[2]
–Australian Signals Directorate (ASD), formerly known as theDefence Signals Directorate (DSD)
–Communications Security Establishment (CSE)
–Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ)
–Special Collection Service (SCS)
–Government Communications Security Bureau (GCSB)Note: The list of locations in the following section is non-exhaustive, and only includes publicly disclosed information.
The collection ofsignals intelligence by Australian embassies and high commissions occurs in capital cities acrossEast Asia and Southeast Asia, namely:Bangkok (Thailand), Beijing (China),Dili (East Timor),Hanoi (Vietnam),Jakarta (Indonesia),Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia),Port Moresby (Papua New Guinea)[1][4]
In the 1980s, surveys were conducted by Canada's CSE agency to pick out Canadian embassies suitable to function as surveillance posts.[5]
As of 16 March 2015, New Zealand's GCSB agency had a secret listening post, codenamed "Caprica", at the New Zealand High Commission inHoniara, the capital of theSolomon Islands. The "Caprica" outpost was reportedly modeled after the NSA's Stateroom outposts at selected United States embassies across the world.[6]
As of 2013, British embassies and consulates in the following capital cities are known to contain clandestine surveillance facilities:
Data collected by Britain is sent to a relay facility atRAF Croughton in Northamptonshire, England, before being transmitted to a data center jointly operated by the U.S.Central Intelligence Agency and the U.S.National Security Agency inCollege Park, Maryland.[8][9]
In the United States, the U.S.Special Collection Service (SCS) contributes to Stateroom. The SCS is jointly operated by theCentral Intelligence Agency (CIA) and theNational Security Agency (NSA).[3] On 23 November 2013, the Dutch newspaperNRC Handelsblad released atop secret NSA presentation leaked byEdward Snowden, which shows the presence of SCS operations in numerous U.S.diplomatic missions located in the following cities:Athens (Greece),Bangkok (Thailand),Berlin (Germany),Brasília (Brazil),Budapest (Hungary),Frankfurt (Germany),Geneva (Switzerland),Lagos (Nigeria),Milan (Italy),New Delhi (India),Paris (France),Prague (Czech Republic),Vienna (Austria),Zagreb (Croatia).
In October 2013, reports by former NSA contractorEdward Snowden led to the revelation of the SCS having systematically wiretappedChancellor of GermanyAngela Merkel's private cell phone over a period of over 10 years, among other activities to wiretap and systematically record large amounts of European and South American leaders' and citizens' communications.[11]
Other SCS locations includeBaku (Azerbaijan),Kyiv (Ukraine),Madrid (Spain),Moscow (Russia),Pristina (Serbia), Rome (Italy),Sarajevo (Bosnia),Tbilisi (Georgia), andTirana (Albania).[9]
The existence of Stateroom was revealed in October 2013 by the former NSA contractorEdward Snowden, who initiated theglobal surveillance disclosure.[12]
...These sites are small in size and in number of personnel staffing them. They arecovert, and their true mission is not known by the majority of thediplomatic staff at the facility where they are assigned.
Damien Rogers, former senior adviser to the New Zealand intelligence agencyGovernment Communications Security Bureau (GCSB) said he was surprised to hear that the "Stateroom" codeword and location of associated sites are being published in the media, because such revelations would cause "anxiety and concern" for the directors of the five intelligence agencies of theUKUSA Agreement.[12]Nicky Hager, a New Zealand investigative journalist who exposed theECHELON surveillance system, confirmed that such surveillance operations have been conducted by the intelligence agencies of theFive Eyes for quite some time.[12]
A spokesman for Australia'sDepartment of Foreign Affairs and Trade said: "It is the long-standing practice of Australian governments not to comment on intelligence matters."[4] Australian Prime MinisterTony Abbott told reporters that "Every Australian governmental agency, every Australian official at home and abroad operates in accordance with the law, and that's the assurance that I can give people at home and abroad".[13]
Government representatives at CSE declined to comment directly on the leak. A spokeswoman for Canada's Defence MinisterRob Nicholson declined to comment.[14]
Hua Chunying, a spokeswoman for China'sForeign Ministry, reacted angrily and demanded that foreign entities and personnel in China "strictly abide" by theVienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations, theVienna Convention on Consular Relations and other international treaties.[1]
German Foreign MinisterGuido Westerwelle summonedBritain's Ambassador to Germany, Simon McDonald, to explain and to clarify the presence of Britain's eavesdropping centre inBerlin.[16][17]
Indonesian Foreign MinisterMarty Natalegawa protested against the surveillance program, and told the media that "such action is not only a breach of security, but also a serious violation of diplomatic norms and ethics, and certainly not in tune with the spirit of friendly relations between nations."[13]
Malaysia's Minister of Home Affairs,Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, said that Snowden's revelation is a "sensitive issue since it involves several countries".[13]
The Solomon Islands' Chief of Staff,Robert Iroga, said that the New Zealand Government's actions damaged New Zealand's image as a "friendly government" in the South Pacific. He added that communications within the inner circle of the Solomons Government was "highly secret information" that rightfully belong to the Solomon Islanders.[18] In addition, Iroga accused New Zealand officials of bullying-behavior in trade negotiations and alleged that New Zealand had shared information regardingTaiwanese aid money with China.[19]
Thailand'sNational Security Council asserted that such forms of surveillance are considered to be acts of criminality under theLaw of Thailand.[20]
