Europe and Washington traded spying accusations Wednesday, as envoys met
to seek ways to rebuild trust after shock revelations about the scale
and scope of US surveillance of its allies. A German intelligence
delegation and a separate group of EU lawmakers were in the US capital
to confront their American allies about the alleged bugging of
Chancellor Angela Merkel's phone.
And the visit coincided with the latest in a series of newspaper reports
based on leaked National Security Agency files, this one alleging US
agents hacked into cables used by Google and Yahoo. President Barack
Obama's spy chiefs are on the defensive over the reports, which have
riled America's allies and exposed the vast scale of the NSA's snooping
on telephone calls and Internet traffic.
The head of the NSA, General Keith Alexander, repeated the administration's argument that all countries spy on one another, and said that the allies should discuss a new working relationship. "I think this partnership with Europe is absolutely important," he said. "But it has to do with everybody coming to the table and let's put off all the sensationalism and say: 'Is there a better way for our countries to work together?'" US intelligence chiefs have said these reports are based on a misinterpretation of an NSA slide leaked to the media by fugitive former intelligence technician Edward Snowden. Rather than siphoning off the records of tens of millions of calls in Europe, as the slide seems to suggest, they argue that the data was in many cases gathered and shared by European agencies.
"The perception that NSA is collecting 70 million phone calls in France or Spain or Italy is factually incorrect," Alexander said at a conference organized by Bloomberg media group.
"This is actually countries working together to support military operations, collecting what they need to protect our forces in areas where we work together as nations."
This argument, which Alexander and overall US spy chief James Clapper made on Tuesday before a Congressional committee, had already raised eyebrows in Europe.
French government spokeswoman Najat Vallaud-Belkacem, speaking after a cabinet meeting chaired by President Francois Hollande, said: "The NSA director's denials don't seem likely."
Germany, angered by the revelation that the NSA tapped Chancellor Angela Merkel's phone, also issued a stern response, denying US claims that the European allies spy on US targets in turn.
Elmar Brok, Chairman of the European Parliament's committee on foreign affairs, told reporters that Alexander
had admitted to an EU
delegation that America had targeted Merkel.
Meanwhile, China and Southeast Asian governments demanded an explanation from the US and its allies on Thursday following media reports that American and Australian embassies in the region were being used as
hubs for Washington's
secret electronic data collection programme.
The reports come amid an international outcry over
allegations the US has spied
on the telephone communications of as many as 35 foreign leaders.
A document from National Security Agency leaker Edward Snowden, published this week by German magazine Der Spiegel, describes a signals intelligence programme called ''Stateroom'' in which US, British, Australian and Canadian embassies secretly house surveillance equipment to collect electronic communications.
Those countries, along with New Zealand, have an intelligence-sharing agreement kn-own as ''Five Eyes.''
The head of the NSA, General Keith Alexander, repeated the administration's argument that all countries spy on one another, and said that the allies should discuss a new working relationship. "I think this partnership with Europe is absolutely important," he said. "But it has to do with everybody coming to the table and let's put off all the sensationalism and say: 'Is there a better way for our countries to work together?'" US intelligence chiefs have said these reports are based on a misinterpretation of an NSA slide leaked to the media by fugitive former intelligence technician Edward Snowden. Rather than siphoning off the records of tens of millions of calls in Europe, as the slide seems to suggest, they argue that the data was in many cases gathered and shared by European agencies.
"The perception that NSA is collecting 70 million phone calls in France or Spain or Italy is factually incorrect," Alexander said at a conference organized by Bloomberg media group.
"This is actually countries working together to support military operations, collecting what they need to protect our forces in areas where we work together as nations."
This argument, which Alexander and overall US spy chief James Clapper made on Tuesday before a Congressional committee, had already raised eyebrows in Europe.
French government spokeswoman Najat Vallaud-Belkacem, speaking after a cabinet meeting chaired by President Francois Hollande, said: "The NSA director's denials don't seem likely."
Germany, angered by the revelation that the NSA tapped Chancellor Angela Merkel's phone, also issued a stern response, denying US claims that the European allies spy on US targets in turn.
Elmar Brok, Chairman of the European Parliament's committee on foreign affairs, told reporters that Alexander
had admitted to an EU
delegation that America had targeted Merkel.
Meanwhile, China and Southeast Asian governments demanded an explanation from the US and its allies on Thursday following media reports that American and Australian embassies in the region were being used as
hubs for Washington's
secret electronic data collection programme.
The reports come amid an international outcry over
allegations the US has spied
on the telephone communications of as many as 35 foreign leaders.
A document from National Security Agency leaker Edward Snowden, published this week by German magazine Der Spiegel, describes a signals intelligence programme called ''Stateroom'' in which US, British, Australian and Canadian embassies secretly house surveillance equipment to collect electronic communications.
Those countries, along with New Zealand, have an intelligence-sharing agreement kn-own as ''Five Eyes.''
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