THE US is attempting to sue former CIA employee and National Security Agency (NSA) contractor-turned-whistleblower Edward Snowden over the publishing of his memoirs this week.

The Justice Department alleges that Mr Snowden published his book, Permanent Record, without “submitting it to the agencies for pre-publication review, in violation of his express obligations under the agreement he signed.”

The department said in a statement yesterday that the lawsuit “does not seek to stop or restrict the publication or distribution of Permanent Record. Rather … the government seeks to recover all proceeds earned by Snowden.”

In 2013 Snowden leaked highly classified documents to the Guardian newspaper revealing a global mass surveillance programme run by the NSA in co-operation with telecommunication companies and the governments of Australia, Canada, New Zealand and Britain.

The whistleblower, who has lived in Russia since the leaks, could face up to 30 years behind bars if he returns to the US and is found guilty of violating its Espionage Act of 1917.

“It is hard to think of a greater stamp of authenticity than the US government filing a lawsuit claiming your book is so truthful that it was literally against the law to write,” Snowden wrote on Twitter.

“Hours after the United States government filed a lawsuit seeking to punish the publication of my new memoir, Permanent Record, the very book the government does not want you to read just became the #1 best-selling book in the world. It is available wherever fine books are sold.”