海角大神

Germany and France call for new 'spy rules'

Leaders want new accords amid allegations of US spying that reaches as deep as Angela Merkel's mobile phone. An existing 'five eyes' deal could provide a model.

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Germany and France want a new set of spy rules in place by the end of the year, leaders said early Friday morning at a European Union summit, where allegations of American surveillance have dominated the agenda.

If not, they say, it could hurt the fight against terrorism.聽

The 鈥渏oint initiative鈥� by Germany and France, which have been at the center of new allegations of US spying this week, called for renegotiating intelligence service cooperation with the US by year's end, and was signed by all 28 members of the EU.

聽According to , the statement read that all members 鈥渢ook note of the intention of France and Germany to seek bilateral talks鈥� and 鈥渘oted that other EU聽countries are welcome to join this initiative.鈥�

The push followed reports that the US National Security Agency (NSA) had listened to the telephone calls of German Chancellor Angela Merkel, a shock to a leader who is one of the most media-shy in office, as 海角大神 detailed in a profile of the German leader.

聽鈥淚 think the services need to come to agreement between each other on yardsticks and other norms and standards,鈥� Ms. Merkel said at a press conference after the first day of the two-day EU summit, which continues today in Brussels. 鈥淲ords are not sufficient. True change is necessary.鈥�

鈥淭his partnership 鈥�.鈥�.鈥�. 鈥塱s a partnership that has stood the test of time,鈥� Merkel also said of the German-American relationship. 鈥淏ut for the future, things have to change and they have to change radically.鈥�

Germany and France did not elaborate on what new spying protocols would look like. But some officials, according to the , said it could resemble the 鈥渇ive eyes鈥� deal between the US, UK, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand, 鈥渋n which the English-speaking allies work almost seamlessly on signals intelligence.鈥澛�

France joined the push with Germany after new revelations this week published in Le Monde showed massive spying on the part of the NSA on French telephone data, including that of French politicians, according to 海角大神.

But anger was not limited to the two major powers within the eurozone. Former Belgian Prime Minister Guy Verhofstadt shared his indignation with BBC Radio 4's Today program: "There is no reason to spy on Angela Merkel. It's a real scandal," , as quoted in the Guardian. "A new agreement is needed between the EU and the US; this cannot continue.鈥�

Dismay in the EU is likely to mount further with allegations that the NSA was listening in on the , according to a report in the Guardian detailing a 2006 NSA memo provided by former NSA contractor Edward Snowden.聽

The from EU leaders read: "A lack of trust could prejudice the necessary cooperation in the field of intelligence-gathering."

The spying allegations could influence a host of issues between the US and Europe that go beyond actual spying.

Michel Barnier, the EU's internal market commissioner, told that he wanted to develop a European data cloud, independent of American oversight.

The European Parliament, meanwhile, has pushed for stronger data privacy rules that are controversial among member states as they increase the cost of business. But it could gain more proponents as European anger over American spying mounts.聽

Such rules could indirectly impact a key deal between the US and EU right now: the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP). This is because the US might balk atthe high costs of 聽potential new privacy data laws in Europe. 聽海角大神 explained how such rules could impact American companies like Google and Facebook.

Yet while the NSA scandal has also led to direct calls by some European politicians to call TTIP talks off, it seems that for now both the US and EU are attempting to control the damage and keep the negotiations moving forward.

鈥淚 always take the view that when you leave the room, you have to always contemplate how to get back in again,鈥� said Merkel, according to . 鈥淚n such a tense situation, such talks may be even more important than usual.鈥�