TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - US President Barack Obama reiterated that Edward Snowden is not a patriot for revealing details of secret US surveillance programs to the public.
He also said that Snowden is not the only factor that leads to the cancellation of his meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
However, Obama pledged he would reform the supervision program and to give greater transparency to the US citizens. He also reiterated that the US was not interested in spying ordinary people.
"All these steps are designed to ensure that the American people can trust that our efforts are in line with our interests and our values," Obama said. "And to others around the world I want to make clear once again that America is not interested in spying on ordinary people."
He said that his administration would work with Congress to reform the Patriot Act and provide greater oversight and transparency. The reforms would target section 215 of the act, which allows the National Security Agency to collect data from millions of communications without a warrant.
However, although Obama said that Snowden, who has been granted asylum in Russia, was not a patriot, he admitted that his disclosures prompted a faster and more passionate response than if Obama had just appointed a board to review the policies.
AL JAZEERA | NATALIA SANTI
