Free Republic

German outrage over a U.S. Internet spying program has broken out ahead of a visit by Barack Obama, with ministers demanding the president provide a full explanation when he lands in Berlin next week and one official likening the tactics to those of the East German Stasi. German Chancellor Angela Merkel's spokesman has said she will raise the issue with Obama in talks next Wednesday, potentially casting a cloud over a visit that was designed to celebrate U.S.-German ties on the 50th anniversary John F. Kennedy's famous "Ich bin ein Berliner" speech... In a guest editorial for Spiegel Online on...

European lawmakers threatened on Tuesday to unpick data-sharing agreements with the United States, reacting furiously to reports that U.S. authorities have accessed emails and other personal data from leading Internet companies. The news has forced European governments to explain whether they let Washington spy on their citizens or benefited from snooping that would be illegal at home. In a heated debate in the European Parliament, lawmakers complained that for a decade they had yielded to U.S. demands for access to European financial and travel data and said it was now time to re-examine the deals and to limit data access....

German outrage over a secret U.S. Internet spying program is building before a visit by Barack Obama next week, with senior members of Chancellor Angela Merkel's government demanding a full explanation from the president when he lands in Berlin. Merkel's spokesman has said she will raise the issue with Obama in talks next Wednesday. That could cast a cloud over the visit, designed to celebrate U.S.-German ties on the 50th anniversary of a famous speech in which President John F. Kennedy declared: "Ich bin ein Berliner". Minister Sabine Leutheusser-Schnarrenberger said reports the United States could access and track virtually all...