Assange: Rasmussen Became NATO Chief After Secret Deal With Turkey, US

Ex-Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen became NATO secretary general in 2009 in exchange for a secret deal with Turkey and the United States to close the Kurdish Roj TV satellite broadcaster operating in Denmark, WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange said Tuesday.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) – In 2009, Wikileaks published a series of secret documents stating that under the Copenhagen-Ankara secret deal approved by US President Barack Obama, the Turkish government had promised to support Rasmussen's bid to head NATO in exchange for closing Roj TV by the Danish authorities.

"A secret deal was done between Turkey, Obama, prime minister of Denmark Rasmussen, whereby he would become the head of NATO in exchange for Denmark wiping out Roj TV," Assange said via video link at the New Era of Journalism: Farewell to Mainstream international media forum hosted by Rossiya Segodnya International Information Agency.

In 2012, Kurdish Roj TV broadcaster, operating in Denmark and broadcasting to Turkey, was accused of having links to the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), which is designated a terrorist organization by Ankara. The broadcaster received a fine of $900,000 and had to change a satellite provider.

The two-day media forum, timed to coincide with the 75th anniversary of establishment of the Soviet Information Bureau, which later evolved into Rossiya Segodnya, kicked off in Moscow on Monday. The event deals with the changing nature of contemporary journalism and is attended by media experts from over 30 countries. Russian President Vladimir Putin attended the event. Assange spoke remotely via a video conference from the Ecuadorian Embassy in London, where he has been residing since August 2012.