Clinton says leaked documents attack the world

WASHINGTON: US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton says the leak of hundreds of thousands of secret diplomatic documents is an attack not only against the United States but the international community as well and erodes trust among nations.

In her first public comments since the weekend release of the classified State Department cables, Clinton said Monday that online whistle-blower Wikileaks acted illegally in posting the material. She said the Obama administration was ``aggressively pursuing'' those responsible for the leak.

Despite the damage, Clinton said she was ``confident'' that U.S. partnerships would withstand the challenges posed by revelations.