New NSA chief, Adm. Michael Rogers, doesn’t think Edward Snowden working for Russians, unlike Mike Rogers

The new National Security Agency (NSA) head, Admiral Michael Rogers said he doesn’t think NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden is or was working for the Russian FSB.

Edward Snowden addressing audience at SXSW via Skype

Asked whether he thought Snowden was or is working for the FSB, the Russian security service, Rogers said: “Could he have? Possibly. Do I believe that that’s the case? Probably not.”

This differs a lot from what Republican congressman and chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, Mike Rogers said earlier this year.

On a January Meet the Press, Rogers said, “Let me just say this, I believe there’s a reason he ended up in the hands, the loving arms, of an FSB agent in Moscow. I don’t think that’s a coincidence…I think there are some interesting questions we have to answer that certainly would lend one to believe that the Russians had at least in some part something to do with Snowden’s theft of NSA files.”

Two months later on Meet the Press, when pressed by host David Gregory concerning what evidence the Chairman had concerning his January statement, the only “evidence” Rogers could produce was:

“Well, again, today, we believe he’s under the influence and every counterintelligence official believes that. You won’t find one that doesn’t believe today he’s under the influence of Russian intelligence services. That we can all agree on. It’s when did that start that there is– I think there is really good evidence. In this case, as the more we look into this, I think the more you’re going to find that that date gets further and further away from hisstory. Matter of fact, I don’t believe thestory he tells about both the airport or his activities inHong Kong are accurate.

“It just gets more complicated and as I said he’s clearly in Moscow, under the influence of intelligence services for a country that is expanding its borders today using military force. I think there’s a lot more questions that need to be answered here.”

Clearly Admiral Rogers requires better evidence than the “belief of every counterintelligence official” before calling Mr. Snowden a spy.