MOSCOW, July 31 (RIA Novosti) – The Russian Foreign Ministry’s point man for human rights said Wednesday that the United States had applied double standards when dealing with former army intelligence leaker Bradley Manning.
Manning, 25, was accused of leaking the largest amount of classified information in US history, including thousands of war logs about US operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. A US military judge on Tuesday found him not guilty of aiding the enemy, but guilty of lesser charges. His sentencing hearing is set to begin on Wednesday.
Konstantin Dolgov, the Russian Foreign Ministry’s special representative for human rights, democracy and the rule of law, said that although the United States often criticizes Russia for human rights violations, US authorities react “harshly, firmly and often without taking human rights into account” when interests of the US government are affected.
“The double standards, demonstrated by the US authorities’ in how they have approached the [Manning] situation, are raising eyebrows. If one demands others to fully observe freedom of speech, then, essentially, one should apply the same approach on himself. When different standards are applied, this is bound to cause disappointment on behalf of foreign governments and human rights institutions,” the Russian diplomat said.
