Richard Bilton uncovers a struggle at the heart of US diplomacy between the ideals of freedom and spreading democracy, and the ruthless demands of American security and narrow self-interest. He examines what the cables reveal about America’s conflicted dealings with Egypt’s deposed dictator Hosni Mubarak, and shows how US diplomats in Cairo missed warning signs that revolution in Egypt was coming. And he details the moral tension in US diplomacy brought about by America’s controversial War on Terror. Using the cables, Richard uncovers the moral compromises made by America’s diplomats over the repatriation of Guantanamo Bay prisoners, and he shows the secret US efforts to block investigations into alleged CIA rendition and abuse.

In the second of two programmes about American diplomacy and the leaked US embassy cables, Richard Bilton examines what the cables reveal about how America handles its enemies and rivals.