Secretive Uncle Sam

　　Reports that U.S. spying program targeted world leaders underscore trust issues

　　In the eyes of the U.S. intelligence community， the whole world appears to be naked. After the recent leaked disclosure by former National Security Agency (NSA) contractor Edward Snowden about the U.S. prying into others’ secrets—even eavesdropping on dozens of heads of state and international organizations including the UN， WTO and IMF—the international community was dumbstruck.

　　It has been revealed that NSA monitored the phone conservations of at least 35 world leaders. Even German Chancellor Angela Merkel， government head of a decades-long ally of Washington， has also fallen victim to the U.S. spying program. Reports say that is still just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the sprawling U.S. spying mechanism. Indeed， only days later， more sources show that nearly the entire globe has fallen under the umbrella of surveillance. The latest revelation from The New York Times says that two of its most important Asian allies—Japan and South Korea—are also on the agency’s official mission list.

　　Spying is not new in the global community， but wholesale spying is still a taboo. A Western proverb says that “Gentlemen do not read other gentlemen’s mail.” And one related anecdote points out that when Nazi Germany invaded the former Soviet Union in 1941， the then British Prime Minister Winston Churchill stopped the UK Government from spying on them by saying “they have become our friends and we do not spy on friends.”

　　With nearly every country on every corner of the world bugged， a question arises： Who does Uncle Sam trust？

　　State of insecurity

　　After the 9/11 attacks in 2001， the United States gained widespread sympathy and support domestically and abroad to fight terrorist activities. And since then， it began to enhance its anti-terrorist efforts by all means. However， that initial sympathy has seemingly been abused.

　　“The United States changed its orientation toward national security following the attacks in 2001 and expanded its spying operations， launching a large-scale monitoring system never seen before. This shows a severe lack of confidence in its national security，” said Teng Jianqun， Director of the Department for American Studies at the China Institute of International Studies (CIIS). “However， the eavesdropping on foreign leaders and even its allies has nothing to do with anti-terrorism. The unprecedented spying activity has produced an extremely negative influence on international relations.”

　　Under the current embarrassing situation， any explanation from the United States is a feeble one. Observers said the world’s sole superpower has become addicted to such acts of espionage.

　　Though the United States insists its monitoring activity is for its own national security， these excuses are untenable， said Zhang Guoqing， a senior research fellow of the Institute of American Studies under the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences. For instance， Zhang said， one of the major reasons for Merkel’s being on the list of U.S. monitoring activity is that the leading position of Germany in science and the economy has constituted a threat to the United States， while the latter wants to grasp the new developments and plans of Germany to enhance its own position in those fields.

　　In addition， Zhang noted Germany has already become the economic bellwether of Europe after the continent was hit by a debt crisis. Washington is also interested in Germany’s role both in European integration and in its relations with Russia. “The U.S. wants to know what’s happening behind the scenes of its European ally，” said Zhang.

　　After the string of revelations surrounding U.S. espionage activities， the U.S. intelligence authorities made little reflection as to the morality of their actions.

　　During a recent grilling by the U.S. House Intelligence Committee， National Intelligence Director James Clapper said understanding “foreign leadership intentions” is one of NSA’s basic goals， “That’s a hardy perennial as long as I have been in the intelligence business.” Though Clapper conceded “we have made mistakes，” he blames them on human error or technical problems. And he urged the lawmakers to be cautious in responding to the blunders.

　　Teng claimed that the United States will continue its spying activities in spite of fierce opposition from the international community.

　　“The United States is taking advantage of its superpower status and its superiority in information technology to stage a kind of info-hegemony. Despite damage done to its image， the United States will continue on the course. No other country has adequate countering measures，” Teng told Beijing Review.

　　However， some U.S. observers are worried about the gains and losses of the spying program.

　　Former press secretary for the Obama administration， Robert Gibbs， recently expressed his concern to U.S. media over the damage brought to the United States. “I think we have to evaluate whether the costs of the methods of gathering some intelligence greatly exceeds the benefit of that intelligence， particularly when we’re listening in to， apparently， some of our very closest allies，” he said.

　　Other observers also said the spying program has staged a subtle assault on U.S. national security by undermining Washington’s ability to act hypocritically and get away with it， eroding its own diplomatic strength which heavily relies on its allies’ support.

　　Crisis of trust

　　The exposure of the details of the U.S. spying operations has prompted outbursts of anger from some European governments， which feel betrayed by an ally—as though Washington sees them not as partners， but as threats.

　　Martin Schulz， President of the European Parliament， has asked， “If we go to the negotiations and we have the feeling those people with whom we negotiate know everything that we want to deal with in advance， how can we trust each other？”

　　After Spain’s El Mundo reported， citing information provided by Snowden， that NSA spied on millions of phone calls in Spain over a single month last year， Spanish Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Garcia Margallo condemned such behavior as “inappropriate” and “unacceptable，” adding that if the alleged espionage reports were true it would break the “climate of trust” between the two countries.

　　Angry about the spying operations， Merkel， whose cellphone was said to have been bugged by NSA for more than 10 years， said “spying among friends does not work.” Meanwhile， the French Prime Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault declared himself “deeply shocked” by reports that NSA recorded millions of French phone calls.

　　Teng of the CIIS told Beijing Review that the impact of the trust crisis caused by the spying scandal will last for a long time. What’s more， other countries are very likely to follow suit by enhancing their own spying capacity.

　　After The New York Times reported that Japan was also on the NSA monitoring list， the Japanese defense ministry announced it is planning to add cyberspace to the realm of national defense. It’s seeking a budget increase to reorganize its technicians into a centralized force of 100 cyber analysts. Currently， Japan has no central agency tasked with defending the nation in cyberspace.

　　Authorities of Germany， Brazil and Mexico were reportedly asking to enhance their own intelligence and counter-intelligence forces. And reports said that India， a country with an advantage in information technology， is planning to strengthen its monitoring system which is criticized as India’s Prism Program.

　　Though Washington and Berlin recently held a special session discussing NSA spying and reached a deal not to spy on each other， observers claimed it contributes little to the current trust crisis.

　　“A bilateral deal is not helpful. The United States will probably not sign such an agreement with all the other countries，” Teng stated.

　　Against the backdrop of escalating tensions over the U.S. spying operations， observers suggested enhancing the role of the UN， which is also a victim of the U.S. eavesdropping， in promoting the formulation of related international regulations and rules. It has been reported that Germany and Brazil are already working to promote a UN resolution on cyber privacy protection.

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