NSA Spied on European Union- Leak from Edward Snowden

NSA Spied on European Union

nymag.com

A report from German magazine Der Spiegel says the NSA bugged the offices and computer networks of European Union representatives in Washington. This information came via a "top secret" 2010 document provided by Edward Snowden, who is maybe tired of talking to The Guardian people all the time (though one of the bylines on the Spiegel story, that of documentary filmmaker Laura Poitras, is one dedicated Snowden watchers will remember from The Guardian's piece introducing the NSA leaker to the world earlier this month.) The magazine also reports that the NSA similarly targeted EU diplomats the

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This is breaking news in Europe about how NSA is wiretapping the EU offices. NSA also has been tracking about half a billion text and email messages from Germany. We are going too far, spying on our allies. Not only are they violating the rights of the American people but also our allies in Europe.
Seems like the location targeted was in Brussels, Belgium. The leak is from Snowden.

nymag.com
(visit the link for the full news article)

reply to post by an0nThinker

And Germany's Justice Minister, Sabine Leutheusser-Schnarrenberger, called the contents of the report "reminiscent of the actions of enemies during the Cold War," adding, "It is beyond imagination that our friends in the US view Europeans as the enemy."

This particular quote stuck out to me as it totally reminds me of when I was in Moscow in 1987. A young Russian girl that I had befriended had shown me the new US Embassy--an imposing slab of brick--and then talked about how the USSR had convinced the US to allow them to build it and had filled the entire place with bugs (the eavesdropping kind--not cockroaches). The US would have done the same really if the shoe had been on the other foot. The thing is that, she's right--it is a cold war type of move and it really makes me wonder if what, collectively, the NSA suffers from is actually an information addiction. That's one explanation I can think of as to why a country would treat one who was to be an ally like an enemy. The other thought is that perhaps ally doesn't equate to friend for the US and considering that a lot of big business (trade agreements) are the ties between the US and the EU, maybe it's just all business to them.

Accidentally double posted but I'll post this article to back up the bugged US embassy story to better utilize this oopsy

articles.latimes.com...

Originally posted by an0nThinker

We are going too far, spying on our allies. Not only are they violating the rights of the American people but also our allies in Europe.

So it appears that Snowden has handed over fairly recent top secret stuff to Germany then,
the article states :

"On behalf of the European Parliament, I demand full clarification and require further information speedily from the US authorities with regard to these allegations," Martin Schulz, the President of the European Parliament said in a statement.

The accusations, if proven true, would have a "severe impact" on transatlantic relations, Mr Schulz warned, saying he was "deeply worried and shocked" by the report.

But, out of the other side of the mouth....
Green Party leaders in the European Parliament, Rebecca Harms and Daniel Cohn-Bendit

called for existing U.S.-EU agreements on the exchange of bank transfer and passenger
record information to be canceled hosted.ap.org...

So, whom is spying upon whom?

To read this stuff, one would imagine that the thousands, if not millions of
spy satellites up there in the sky are just a fairly tale.

Not that this is boring, its all very good spy work.

The thing is everyone is doing it. Every nation that has the capability
is spying, and its been that way for centuries, albeit since the 50s
the tech has gotten quite sophisticated, and far more sensitive.

It will be interesting to see the outcome of all of this "leaking".

reply to post by WhiteAlice


This just means -
Allies ≠ No spying
They are probably doing this for FTA, WTO trade negotiations, future Iraq war. Anything really to give them an upper hand in dealing with allies..

In this day and age everyone is spying on everyone and that is what happens when it is just to easy to do, they all do it, US,UK, EU, Russia,China....
They are all spying on each other, enemy or not because it is easy access for hackers on all sides, or at least that is my opinion.

This can't be!You mean when Obi promised us a"transparent"administration he lied to us AND Europe?Suckers!Don't people realize yet that when Obama's lips are moving he's lying?

But, out of the other side of the mouth....
Green Party leaders in the European Parliament, Rebecca Harms and Daniel Cohn-Bendit

called for existing U.S.-EU agreements on the exchange of bank transfer and passenger
record information to be canceled hosted.ap.org...

So, whom is spying upon whom? ]

Not sure what you mean with that that but that existing U.S.- EU agreement is 1 sided. It's about giving the US access to all money tranfers going on in Europe to fight terrorism (but more likely for other reasons (like downgrading EU country's for example?). Of course the EU can't see money transfers from the US.

reply to post by Plugin


Yes, spot on, imo. Bingo!

Look at the the instability of the EU currencies.
The stuggle for the dollar as the world reserve currency.

That is afterall the real problem that is like a plague upon the nations,
they have all borrowed and hedged to the degree that they are becoming
unstable. Of course, the smaller nations are being sacrificed first, by the hands
of the IMF, and the world bank.

When people realize that their banking data, and all its details are
being handed over to the banking elites by way of The Bilderbergs,
and yet they are worried about phone tapping, it seems that is just the
top layer, the one which is in the publics eye.

I agree all nations are spying on each other, but that does not make it acceptable, In fact it should be an even more outrage that none of the governments see privacy as a priority.

t will be interesting to see the outcome of all of this "leaking".

More of the same even easier with the push for smart meters,smart appliances smart car's few years from now it will be all the 'rage' again.

Just like spiying as been apart of society as long as there have been government's.this 'issue' is something that foreign and our own government is going to benefit from.

And the people go on their merry way being manipuilated prodded in to more draconianism.

reply to post by neo96


Yes, there are so many spy mechanisms today I would need to make
a list to recall them all. Its beyond wrong, its twisted. I mean to
say that there is definitely a multi purpose agenda running, not
too far from 1984. And to think that Mr. O is not all that upset, or bothered.
Thats a huge clue in my book.

reply to post by burntheships


It's like the Coloseum throw the masses fresh meat and watch them fight over it all the while doing something else we should be focused on.

Yeah he doesn't seem to worried about it no one in government does which should be raising red flags for everyone.

reply to post by neo96


It sure serves to turn the eyes upon the international espionage scene,
meanwhile back at the ranch. Yes, and Wikileaks was a proper primer
for the masses. Nothing of real substance came from it, what injustice
upon the peasants was put to an end from all the dripping?

Again, not to say that I agree to all of the infringement upon our rights
to privacy, however what good is The Fifth Amendment going to be when it is
bypassed. That is the key, people may have forgotten that for centuries
the rest of the world looked with envy upon the U.S. and to a large
degree, still do.

reply to post by an0nThinker

This is breaking news in Europe about how NSA is wiretapping the EU offices. NSA also has been tracking about half a billion text and email messages from Germany. We are going too far, spying on our allies.

Read up on Echelon and the very beginning of international spying. In many cases, our allies ask us to do the dirty work they are not allowed to.

In the 60/70s, the UK and other allies were unable to spy on their own, so they contracted the US. In some cases, the US contracted them to spy on Russia.

Don't think just because they are doing it to another nation, that nation didn't sanction or ask for it. And don't be surprised if European intelligence is handing over information on Americans which the US asked for.

IS anyone, anywhere, ever going to do something about this?

Or is it just going to carry on as usual?

reply to post by dominicus


Nope nothing is going to be done, when far worst things have come and passed. The Europeans however might not be so kind. They might downgrade some diplomatic relations or intelligence sharing, but that would be the extent of their anger..

reply to post by dominicus

I'm afraid all in all it is just going to be business as usual.

Except the orwellian cat is finally out of the bag.
The super-surveillance state is no longer a libertarian conspiracy theory.
A lot of trust amongst allies is lost (even if it was only based on illusion / self-deception) and the bridge to the moral highground is burned.

*This might still have consequences here in Germany though, because of our grim past regarding surveillance-states... and because we are in an election year.

It's not that we didn't knew, we suspected it and has been discussed widely.
Should we be angry? why? because politicians were tapped?
Than what about the people, we are all being tapped/watched and it is no secret.
The thing is, we don't notice it.

Now the NSA has been wiretapping EU offices, but AnOnthinker, i wonder why you say "we are going too far, spying on our allies".
Is it you spying? i do not think so, moreover, you can be sure you are being watched too.
This is the secret sick little game of the elite, smiling at eachother with a knife behind their back, and spying on us civilians.