United States President Barack Obama said on Wednesday that there is no evidence of any security breach in connection with Central Investigation Agency (CIA) chief David Petraeus’s extramarital affair with Paula Broadwell.
“I have no evidence at this point. From what I have seen, no classified information that could have had a negative impact on our national security was disclosed,” Obama told reporters in his first news conference since his re-election last week.
Speaking from the East Room of the White House, Obama addressed a range of issues including a possible standoff with Republicans over his proposed tax hikes for the wealthiest Americans, the deadly attack on US embassy in Libya, his plans to deal with Iran’s nuclear ambitions, and the civil war in Syria.
Obama was clearly trying to avoid questions about the salacious circumstances surrounding Petraeus’s exit from the CIA, saying that he is ‘withholding judgment’ regarding Petraeus’s affair with Paula Broadwell.
The FBI is said to have learned of the illicit relationship this past summer amid an investigation into Broadwell’s alleged cyber-harassment of a woman she reportedly perceived as a rival for the US spy chief’s affections.
Law enforcement officials have said that they withheld information about the case from top US officials because it had not reached the threshold of a national security concern.
The Petraeus case has also ensnared General John Allen, the top American commander in Afghanistan, who is being investigated for possible ‘inappropriate communications’ with a Florida socialite who was allegedly harassed by Broadwell via anonymous e-mails.
Petraeus is scheduled to testify before a US Senate Standing Committee today regarding the September 11 attack on an American embassy compound in Benghazi which left four Americans diplomats dead, including the US ambassador to Libya, Christopher Stevens.
Obama also said on Wednesday that he planned open up a dialogue with Iran and dissuade Tehran from pursuing a nuclear weapon.
