Your trusted source

Argentina’s President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner met with former US National Security Agency (NSA) contractor Edward Snowden — who in 2013 caused shockwaves around the world when he revealed the extent of Washington’s global Internet and phone surveillance — when she visited Moscow in April, Buenos Aires Herald reports.

Anthony Romero, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), confirmed that the meeting took place. Romero and Ben Wizner are Snowden’s attorneys in the US.

Repeated efforts to contact the president’s spokesman, Alfredo Scoccimarro, by phone and text messages were unsuccessful.

“Snowden met with President Fernández de Kirchner. They talked for more than an hour. I don’t know why she has not made public comments about it,” Romero said during an interview with the Herald.

According to Romero, the president visited Snowden — who has been granted a three-year residency permit by the Kremlim after revealing US surveillance in 2013 — when she travelled to Russia during the last days of April.

“President Fernández de Kirchner was the first head of state to meet with Snowden. They talked for about an hour,” he added.

Romero did not specify the exact date of the encounter and did not make reference to the topics the two discussed. However, he made it clear that Snowden was delighted with her visit. “She made a good impression on him,” he said. “I don’t know why she has not spoken about the meeting.”