Brussels, 10/09/2013 (Agence Europe) - European Commissioner for Home Affairs Cecilia Malmström said on Twitter on Tuesday that she was concerned about the latest news in the press that the US National Security Agency (NSA) is monitoring SWIFT (a global financial database), and that she will ask for “clarification” from her US counterparts.
The previous evening in Strasbourg, the European Parliament's ALDE Group - through its leader Guy Verhofstadt (Belgium) and Sophia in't Veld (Netherlands) - called on the European Commission to state what it knows about these spying activities. As well as a debate, the ALDE Group called for a specific statement on whether or not the agreement that has linked the EU and US since 2010 should be suspended.
During a vote, MEPs wanted to give more time to the Commission, however, so that it can shed more light on the links between SWIFT (Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication) and the NSA, and they decided to postpone this debate until the next plenary at the beginning of October. The SWIFT agreement, adopted only with great pains by the European Parliament in 2010, which allows Americans access - under certain conditions - to the financial data (for example, transactions) of European citizens with the aim of fighting terrorism, is currently being re-assessed by the Commission, as is the PNR agreement with the US on the transfer of air passengers' personal data. This assessment is part of a classic mid-term review exercise and had already been planned before the revelations of former CIA agent, Edward Snowden, erupted. The examination of the bilateral cooperation instruments between the EU and Washington has nevertheless become more urgent.
In a comment sent on Monday afternoon, Malmström's staff said there was no knowledge of access to SWIFT by US authorities other than what is provided for in the agreement, said Malmström's spokesperson, Michele Cercone. The agreement contains strict safeguards, he said, particularly to prevent unauthorised access to this database, and it also outlaws any cross-linking with other files.
In the view of the ALDE and Greens/EFA Groups - which wanted a debate in Strasbourg this week - any suspicion about the practices of the US should lead to the agreement being suspended. “If there is the slightest doubt that the US authorities are in breach, the Commission should take measures to suspend this agreement immediately while awaiting clarification”, Verhofstadt stated. “According to media reports, the NSA is directly exploiting SWIFT systems. What is more, the US believes that it can use these data for any purpose, without it being linked to terrorism. This constitutes two clear violations of the EU-US TFTP agreement, which could certainly justify suspension. Termination is a possibility if these allegations are confirmed”, in't Veld said (our translation throughout). (SP/transl.fl)