The U.S. government said on Tuesday that it was disappointed by Britain's refusal to extradite computer hacker Gary McKinnon.

British computer hacker Gary McKinnon [File photo]

"The United States is disappointed by the decision to deny Gary McKinnon's extradition to face long overdue justice in the United States. We are examining the details of the decision," said State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland.

However, Nuland said the issue would not affect relations between the United States and Britain. "We have an incredible alliance and that will obviously continue in all of its forms," she told reporters.

Gary McKinnon, a 46-year-old British computer hacker, was accused of hacking into Pentagon and NASA networks of the United States right after the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks. What he did was described as of one of the largest breaches into the U.S. military networks in history.

British government said on Tuesday that it had denied the U.S. request to extradite Gary McKinnon because of his high risk of committing suicide. The decision means that McKinnon has won the decade-long legal fight to avoid trial in the United States.

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