EARLIER SPY REPORTS WENT UNPROSECUTED

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP90-00965R000403710017-2
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 1
• Document Creation Date: December 22, 2016
• Document Release Date: February 27, 2012
• Sequence Number: 17
• Publication Date: May 23, 1986
• Content Type: OPEN SOURCE

Declassified in Part -Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/02/28 :CIA-RDP90-009658000403710017-2
' ~~~ R ~p ~ 6JASHINGTON POST
~'~ ;-;a;: ~g? 23 Play 1986
H
Earlier Spy Reports
Went Unprosecuted
NBCCited'Ivy Bella' in 19iB5 Broadcoat
BY Qaap Lartlnse h
w.w.Me" sae sear wcN.r
Last Nov. 27, NBC news corre-
spondent James Polls broadcast a
report on the netayork's "Nightly
Nees" program on a court hearing
for accused spy Ronald W. Felton.
The hearing, Polk reported, had
ibrmer National Seciuity Agency
sold to the Sovie~defet ee at-
oorney had, in questloning an FBI
agent. asked him about a project
Code-nazlled "Ivy Bells."
"'There are indications," Polk
said, "(that] Ivy Bells refers to a
Navy eavesdropping operation. The
Alavy is known to have submarines
outside Soviet harbors listening to
what the Russians say."
The item produced no public
comment-and no threat of pt+os-
acutioa from the government.
Last Monday morning. with the
Felton trial about to start in U.S.
District Court in Baltimore Polk
dusted gaff his old notes for a scene
;ester.
+ ~+`~-M" ~ ~t ~N
on the "Today" show, "apparently
gave away one of the NSA's most
sensitive secrets-a project with
the cxde name 'Ivy Bells'-believed
to be a top secret underwater
eavesdropping operation by Amer-
ican submarines, inside Russian
L_~_~ "
(;laCAtWi3NBC, sources said, the pre-
view was trdted as a routine story
theft got ao special attention. But
within hours, Central Intelligence
Agencg- Director William J. Casey
had announced his belief that Folk's
assertions, "if true" violated the
strictures of a 1950 law "against
publishing any classified informa-
tion concerning the communications
intelligence activities of the United
States." The law has never been
used against a news organization,
and orily sparingly invoked against
accused spies such as Felton.
"My statutory obugagon to pro-
tact inteWgence sources and meth-
eds requires me to refer this matter
to the Department of Justice,"
Casey said in a statement read to
bows organisations.
yy Jterday thatthe matte bye.
ing reviewed by Criminal Division
lawyers in tight of the espionage
jaw Casey cited. Casey reportedly
met with Attorney General Edwin
Meese III during the day, but
sources said the meeting concerned
ether matters.
The CIA was apparently condnu-
ing to review a Washington Post
article on the Felton case published
Wednesday that said Pdtoa had
compromised a costly, kmg-running
and highly sophisticated electronic
?v~oPDinR operation involving
U. S. submarines and ahigh-tech-
dology device that officials believe
is now in Soviet hands. There has
been no indication yet that the gov-
ernment intends to refer the Post
story to the Justice Department for
possible prosecution.
Sources at NBC noted that news
media acxounts of eavesdropping
operations im-olving submarines
have recurred for many years.
In Januay 1974, for instance,
The Washington Post reported in a
front-page article by the late Lau-
rence Stern that "the United States
maintains a fleet of electronic
eavesdropping submarines operat-
ing close to the Soviet coastline to
monitor Russian submarine activity
and secret military communica-
tions."
The article, describing the sub-
marines as "underwater U2s" roam-
ing Soviet territorial waters as part
of a project code-named "Holy-
stone," said the ships were
equipped to collect a wide variety of
electronic oommunicationa and ra-
dar inteWgence. It also said the So-
vista probably knew about the sur-
veillance and, quoting intelligence
sources, mentioned a narrow es-
cape by one sub and a collision of
another with a Soviet sub near the
Russian coast.
The next year, The New York
Times published several, more ex-
tensive articles by Seymour Hersh
about the Holystone operations,
which be said had been more re-
cently code-named "Pinnacle" and
"Bollard." The article quoted one
source as saying that the nuclear-
powered submarines in use "were
able to plug into Soviet land com-
munication cables strewn across
the ocean bottom and thus were
able to intercept high-level military
messages and other communica-
tions considered too important to
be sent by radio or other less se-
cure means."
Then-Defense Secretary James
R. Schtesinger was so angry about
what Hersh wrote that he wanted
the reporter prosecuted, sources
said, but it was the age of Water-
gate and investigations of the CIA,
the NSA and other intelligence
agencies were in full saying, Former
Schlesinger aide Joseph I.aitin, now
the ombudsman at The Poet, re-
called that the Ford White House
seat negative signals and Laitin
added his own, urging Schlesinger
to look instead for the kakers. The
idea of prosecuting Hersh was
dropped, but not, according to one
source, before it got some attention
at the Justice Department.
Since then, there have been oth-
er allusions to U.S. underwater
eavesdropping in the press and in
books by authors such as American
University Prof. Jeffrey Richelson.
They were not prosecuted.
STAT
Declassified in Part -Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/02/28 :CIA-RDP90-009658000403710017-2