Colin Powell forced to deny affair with Romanian diplomat
Colin Powell, the former secretary of state, has been forced to deny that he had an affair with a Romanian diplomat, but admitted sending emails of a "very personal nature".
Corina Cretu with Colin Powell. Photo: CORINACRETU.WORDPRESS.COM/FOTO
By Harriet Alexander
9:50AM BST 02 Aug 2013
Mr Powell, 76, was confronted by a hacker named "Guccifer" who threatened to publish correspondence between him and Corina Cretu, 46, now an MEP.
In the emails, described as being "of a very personal nature" by Mr Powell, she refers to him as the love of her life, according to investigative website The Smoking Gun.
Ms Cretu was a presidential adviser and senator, who was part of the Romanian delegation that greeted Mr Powell and President George W. Bush when they visited Bucharest in 2002. She was also part of a Romanian delegation to Washington in March 2004.
Mr Powell has been married to his wife Alma for over 50 years.
"This was a friendship that electronically became very personal and then back to normal," said Mr Powell in a statement issued in response to the hacking.
"After I left the Department of State in January 2005 we stayed in touch via email. I frequently gave her advice on the prospects of finding a position with the UN or other international organisations.
"Over time the emails became of a very personal nature, but did not result in an affair.
"Those type of emails ended a few years ago. There was no affair then and there is not one now."
Ms Cretu was married last year.
The hacker has previously targeted the email accounts of officials in the administrations of Bill Clinton, George W Bush and Barack Obama. Former FBI agents and friends and family of the Bushes have also been attacked.
"Guccifer" attempted to post a series of emails on Mr Powell's Facebook page. He then put a link to an online store of the documents on the Facebook page of a retired general.
Mr Powell then warned Ms Cretu that the hacker "may have lots of your emails, maybe not." He then advised, "so best to delete all between us."
In an email to The Smoking Gun, Mr Powell explained: "In light of what was happening it seems obvious to ask Ms Cretu to delete emails."
He added: "She sent photos on a regular basis. Lots of family photos with her nieces, who she adores, family reunions, formal business sessions, her wedding and some bathing suit photos. Never anything improper."
