10 July 2013

NYT: US and Western Allies share long history of intelligence exchange

The US and its Western Allies, including France and Germany that have expressed concerns over US data mining operations in Europe, share a long history of quietly exchanging intelligence on their citizens, the New York Times reported on Tuesday.

Notwithstanding the vocal criticism of European leaders on the Prism program, France, Germany and the UK may have benefited from US intelligence operations and have maintained wide-ranging surveillance operations on their own. According to the NYT, Germany continues intensive exchange of information with the US based on Cold War era agreements, while Le Monde reported last week that the French intelligence agency (DGSE) maintains an extensive telecommunications data collection system on its own that is ‘’on the margins of legality and beyond serious control’’.

Source: The New York Times | For Western Allies, a Long History of Swapping Intelligence
Source: Le Monde | Révélations sur le Big Brother français