# Has a high level diplomatic translator ever "talked"? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [May 7, 2013, 2:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-a-high-level-diplomatic-translator-ever-talked/657676 "2013-05-07T02:08:09Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Mangosteen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Mangosteen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangosteen)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2013, 2:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-a-high-level-diplomatic-translator-ever-talked/657676/1 "2013-05-07T02:08:09Z")
High level diplomatic translators must hear some unbelievably sensitive statements. The conversations between U S and USSR leaders during the cold war certainly must have contained secrets that only the most senior members of the administration were privy to. Yet here is this “regular” person listening (and translating) this sensitive material. Has a diplomatic translator ever been caught leaking information? How do governments stop them from doing so? ---
**Author:** ![astro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9dc877/32.png) [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2013, 2:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-a-high-level-diplomatic-translator-ever-talked/657676/2 "2013-05-07T02:34:51Z")
I’m not sure that even high level translators would really have all that much in the way of deep, dark secrets. Most of what goes on between high level politicians of different countries is stuff being publicly discussed and is not all that clandestine. The really dark internal secrets are not usually discussed with other countries even at high levels. ---
**Author:** ![Do\_Not\_Taunt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/do_not_taunt/32/2968_2.png) [@Do\_Not\_Taunt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Do_Not_Taunt)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2013, 4:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-a-high-level-diplomatic-translator-ever-talked/657676/3 "2013-05-07T04:38:26Z")
> [@astro](#): > > I’m not sure that even high level translators would really have all that much in the way of deep, dark secrets. Most of what goes on between high level politicians of different countries is stuff being publicly discussed and is not all that clandestine. The really dark internal secrets are not usually discussed with other countries even at high levels. Stalin and FDR talking at Yalta, and that kind of thing? ---
**Author:** ![Neofio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/82dd89/32.png) [@Neofio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Neofio)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2013, 11:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-a-high-level-diplomatic-translator-ever-talked/657676/4 "2013-05-07T11:17:43Z")
In addition, if sensitive information absolutely needs to be discussed and a translator is necessary, it would be relatively easy to have a high-level diplomat of either country to translate. I can vouch that sometimes that translator is actually some mid to high level government official that is there outside of his official capacity, \*specifically \*to translate. ---
**Author:** ![Bijou\_Drains](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bijou_drains/32/2814_2.png) [@Bijou\_Drains](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bijou_Drains)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2013, 9:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-a-high-level-diplomatic-translator-ever-talked/657676/5 "2013-05-07T21:57:47Z")
trivia, from what I’ve seen the way it works is that the translator works on the speech of the other person. So Obama would have a US person translating Russian to him. The US translator would not speak Russian (although I guess they could if needed). ---
**Author:** ![BurnMeUp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/91b2a8/32.png) [@BurnMeUp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BurnMeUp)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2013, 11:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-a-high-level-diplomatic-translator-ever-talked/657676/6 "2013-05-07T23:11:05Z")
I have a friend who did some linguistics and translation work in Arabic, she had to have NSA security clearance to work there I have a feeling most folks who seek such clearance tend to not be talkers.