Briefing: Tension as US spies tap phones of allies

The US Government has been rocked by a series of revelations about extensive Internet and phone surveillance by its spy agencies. 

It is said to have involved eavesdropping on embassies, Chinese networks, EU offices and even intercepting phone calls made to German Chancellor Angela Merkel. 

So how did the controversy arise and what’s at stake? Simon Jones, drawing information from BBC online, explains.

What’s the source of the allegations?

Edward Snowden, a former contractor for the CIA, who left the US in late May after leaking details of the US spying activities to the media.

When did the scandal break?

In June when The Guardian newspaper reported that the US National Security Agency(NSA) was collecting the telephone records of tens of millions of Americans. 

This was followed by allegations in the Washington Post and The Guardian that NSA tapped directly into servers like Facebook, Google and Microsoft to track online communication in a surveillance programme called Prism.

Is the surveillance confined to the US?

No, Britain’s electronic eavesdropping agency, GCHQ, was also accused of gathering information via Prism, too. 

The UK spy agency has also been accused of tapping fibre-optic cables that carry global communications and sharing the information with NSA.

How do we know the US was eavesdropping on Angela Merkel’s phone?

The German media reported that NSA had intercepted calls made to the German Chancellor’s mobile phone for a decade. One article stated that surveillance had only ended a few months
ago.

What was her reaction?

The German Government summoned the US Ambassador on October 24 demanding a full explanation. Merkel also discussed the matter on the phone with President Obama. 

She has since sent intelligence officials to Washington to demand answers to the claims.

Which other allies have been spied on by the US?

Media reports claim that the US has bugged the European Union offices in the US and Europe as well as leading more than 61,000 hacking operations worldwide including many in Hong Kong and China. Spain has also called on the US to give details of any eavesdropping amid reports it monitored 60 million Spanish telephone calls in a month. France’s President Francois Hollande has also expressed alarm at reports that millions of French calls had been monitored by the US.

Why are the allies upset?

It boils down to trust between the US and other nations as well as an individual’s right to privacy.

Merkel herself warned that trust between allies could be undermined by such surveillance actions.

How has President Obama responded?

The US President has assured his German counterpart that her calls are not being monitored now and that it would not happen in future. 

But the White House did not deny bugging her phone in the past.