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France Denounces Revelations of Spying by N.S.A. France Condemns Spying by N.S.A., but Not Too Harshly
(about 9 hours later)
PARIS — The French government on Wednesday reacted angrily to revelations about extensive eavesdropping by the United States government on the private conversations of senior French leaders, including three presidents and dozens of senior government figures. PARIS — The French government on Wednesday reacted with carefully calibrated anger to revelations about extensive eavesdropping by the United States government on the private conversations of senior French officials — including three presidents.
President François Hollande called an emergency meeting of the Defense Council on Wednesday morning to discuss the revelations published by the French news website Mediapart and the left-leaning newspaper Libération about spying by the National Security Agency. The modulated reaction suggested that the surveillance, by the National Security Agency, was not a surprise and several French lawmakers and officials said as much, even noting that it was part of the diplomatic game.
He spoke with President Obama on Wednesday afternoon and made clear “the principles that must govern relations between allies on intelligence matters,” the Élysée Palace said in a statement, adding that senior French intelligence officials would soon travel to the United States for discussions. In the immediate aftermath of news reports on the eavesdropping, which surfaced overnight Tuesday, President François Hollande called an emergency meeting of the Defense Council to discuss documents published by the French news website Mediapart, the left-leaning newspaper Libération and the anti-secrecy organization WikiLeaks, which obtained the documents.
Earlier in the day, the French government released a spare but strongly worded statement saying that the eavesdropping was “unacceptable” and that it would not “tolerate any actions that put French security and the protection of French interests in danger.” The revelations come as France is debating legislation that would allow the mass collection of data, as well as more targeted eavesdropping by its intelligence services. Mr. Hollande spoke with President Obama on Wednesday afternoon and later said in a statement that he had received assurances that such intelligence gathering was no longer going on.
The new information, regarding French officials from 2006 to 2012, was published on the website of the anti- secrecy organization WikiLeaks, which did not say where it had obtained it. Julian Assange, a founder of WikiLeaks, is listed as one of the authors of the Mediapart and Libération articles. The French foreign minister, Laurent Fabius, also registered his dissatisfaction, calling in Jane D. Hartley, the United States ambassador to France, to protest the surveillance.
Leaked N.S.A. documents have previously upended American diplomatic ties with a close ally. Relations between Washington and Berlin cooled significantly after reports in October 2013 accused the N.S.A. of monitoring one of Chancellor Angela Merkel’s cellphones, although Germany’s federal prosecutor dropped a formal investigation this month because of a lack of evidence. The first French government statement released Wednesday was spare but strongly worded, saying that the eavesdropping was “unacceptable” and that the government would not “tolerate any actions that put French security and the protection of French interests in danger.”
Yet subsequent statements took a milder tone. A statement from the Élysée Palace later spoke of intelligence officials traveling to Washington to “deepen cooperation” although earlier in the day, there had been talk of the officials going to verify that the surveillance had truly stopped.
The revelations come as France is debating legislation that would allow the mass collection of data, as well as more targeted eavesdropping, by its intelligence services.
The new information, gleaned from electronic surveillance data, focuses on French officials from 2006 to 2012. WikiLeaks did not say where it had obtained it. Julian Assange, a founder of WikiLeaks, is listed as one of the authors of the Mediapart and Libération articles.
Leaked N.S.A. documents have previously upended American diplomatic ties with a close ally. Relations between Washington and Berlin cooled significantly after reports in October 2013 accused the agency of monitoring one of Chancellor Angela Merkel’s cellphones.
France has a long history of spying on both friends and foes, especially in the arena of industrial intelligence, although it draws the line — as most countries do — at spying on national leaders. Still, it seems less inclined to condemn the United States unequivocally for engaging in surveillance.
The Mediapart and Libération articles featured conversations involving three French presidents: Jacques Chirac, Nicolas Sarkozy and Mr. Hollande. The information that was released was largely predictable, although it was not the kind that anyone involved would want distributed to a wider audience.The Mediapart and Libération articles featured conversations involving three French presidents: Jacques Chirac, Nicolas Sarkozy and Mr. Hollande. The information that was released was largely predictable, although it was not the kind that anyone involved would want distributed to a wider audience.
Notes written by unidentified analysts about conversations in 2012 between Mr. Hollande and his prime minister at the time, Jean-Marc Ayrault, show that Mr. Hollande was worried about the economic situation in Greece. Fearing that Ms. Merkel was too rigid in her approach, he reached out to the Social Democrats in Germany, who were in the opposition at the time. Notes written by unnamed analysts about conversations in 2012 between Mr. Hollande and his prime minister at the time, Jean-Marc Ayrault, show that Mr. Hollande was already worried about the economic situation in Greece. Fearing that Ms. Merkel was too rigid in her approach, he reached out to the Social Democrats in Germany, who were in the opposition at the time.
Mr. Hollande leads the Socialist Party in France, but as a national leader he would be expected to deal with his counterpart rather than with an opposition party. Mr. Hollande is a member of the Socialist Party in France, but as a national leader he would be expected to deal with his counterpart rather than with an opposition party.
Mr. Sarkozy comes across in the documents as grandiose, expressing the view that he is the one who can “solve the world financial crisis,” according to one cable. Mr. Sarkozy comes across in the documents as grandiose, expressing the view that he was the one who could “solve the world financial crisis,” according to one cable. Mr. Sarkozy is expected to be a candidate for the 2017 presidential elections.
Mr. Sarkozy is expected to be a candidate for the 2017 presidential elections.
The only cable that features Mr. Chirac suggests that his highly detailed instructions for his foreign minister, Philippe Douste-Blazy, were the product of worries that the minister was unreliable. The comment in the cable reads: “Chirac’s detailed orders may be in response to the foreign minister’s propensity, amply demonstrated in the past and the impetus behind a number of presidential reprimands, for making ill-timed or inaccurate remarks.”The only cable that features Mr. Chirac suggests that his highly detailed instructions for his foreign minister, Philippe Douste-Blazy, were the product of worries that the minister was unreliable. The comment in the cable reads: “Chirac’s detailed orders may be in response to the foreign minister’s propensity, amply demonstrated in the past and the impetus behind a number of presidential reprimands, for making ill-timed or inaccurate remarks.”
The White House was quick to release a statement saying that there was currently no surveillance of the French president and that it would not eavesdrop on him, and describing the French as “indispensable partners.” The statement made no reference to past practices, however, and also left the door open for future surveillance — in the case of “a valid national security purpose.” Mr. Chirac could not be reached for comment. 
“We are not targeting and will not target the communications of President Hollande,” the National Security Council, which is made of President Obama’s senior national security advisers and cabinet officials, said in a statement released early Wednesday. The spying report intruded at a Washington news conference with Secretary of State John Kerry on Wednesday at the close of a meeting with senior Chinese officials. Mr. Kerry alluded to his own “terrific relationship" with Mr. Fabius, and, like Mr. Obama, insisted that no spying was going on now, even as he was silent about the past.
“Indeed, as we have said previously, we do not conduct any foreign intelligence surveillance activities unless there is a specific and validated national security purpose. This applies to ordinary citizens and world leaders alike,” the statement said. “We work closely with France on all matters of international concern, and the French are indispensable partners.” Mr. Kerry dismissed the published material as “an old WikiLeaks document.”
Mr. Sarkozy’s office said he would not comment on the revelations. In a statement released early Wednesday, the National Security Council said, “We are not targeting and will not target the communications of President Hollande.”
Several of his former ministers and top aides denounced the practice, but his former diplomatic counselor, Jean-David Levitte, said he was “not surprised” by the articles, adding that as France’s ambassador to the United Nations, he had always realized he was being listened to. “Once one has realized that it is happening, one adapts one’s practices,” he told Mediapart. “Indeed, as we have said previously, we do not conduct any foreign intelligence surveillance activities unless there is a specific and validated national security purpose. This applies to ordinary citizens and world leaders alike,” the statement said.
The French Foreign Ministry formally called in the United States ambassador to France, Jane D. Hartley, on Wednesday to express its displeasure. She was due to meet with Laurent Fabius, the foreign minister, on Wednesday afternoon. Mr. Sarkozy’s office said he would not comment.
Although it was not clear what method the N.S.A. used to gather the data that was disclosed on Tuesday, most of the leaked cables have the word “unconventional” typed below the text, and one includes the notation “foreign satellite.” The cables are unsigned, and it is not known who wrote them. Several of his former ministers and top aides denounced the practice, but Mr. Sarkozy’s former diplomatic counselor, Jean-David Levitte, said he was “not surprised” by the articles, adding that as ambassador to the United Nations, he always knew that someone was listening.
Only five documents — one on Mr. Hollande, three on Mr. Sarkozy and one on Mr. Chirac — were released by the two news outlets, but the WikiLeaks legal adviser in Paris, Juan Branco, said that more information concerning France would be made public in the coming days. Although it was not clear what method the N.S.A. used to gather the data that was disclosed overnight Tuesday, most of the leaked cables have the word “unconventional” typed below the text, and one includes the notation “foreign satellite.” While WikiLeaks did not identify the source of the documents, they predated the spring of 2013, when the N.S.A. contractor Edward J. Snowden took an archive of intelligence documents to Hong Kong and gave them to several journalists. WikiLeaks has subsequently assisted him, although it has not been heavily involved in the publication of those documents.
The lead news article published in Libération said that the documents made available to the newspaper and to Mediapart included the numbers for the landlines and cellphones for a number of top officials, including Mr. Sarkozy. Historically, with few exceptions, the N.S.A. has intercepted all foreign communications it could get access to if they were of conceivable intelligence interest. But the Snowden disclosures meant that for the first time, American officials had to balance the potential intelligence value of a target against the possible diplomatic fallout if the intercept was publicly revealed.
The article in Libération did not say that Mr. Hollande’s cellphone was targeted, and it said that communications on the “red phones” used by the presidents “were not compromised.” Matthew M. Aid, an intelligence historian and author of books on national security, said WikiLeaks’ failure to say whether the new documents came from Mr. Snowden’s collection raised the possibility that a different insider was the source of the leak.
While WikiLeaks did not identify the source of the documents, the documents in the initial tranche it published predated the spring of 2013, when the former N.S.A. contractor Edward J. Snowden took an archive of intelligence documents to Hong Kong and gave them to several journalists. WikiLeaks has subsequently assisted Mr. Snowden, although it has not been involved in most of the publication of those documents. “If it’s a second leaker, it’s a nightmare for the agency,” he said. Since 2013, N.S.A. officials have spent millions of dollars to improve the agency’s internal security to prevent leaks and to detect and trace them if they occur.
If authentic, the documents also predated a policy change that Mr. Obama made 18 months ago regarding the surveillance of foreign leaders, after the uproar over the suspected monitoring of Ms. Merkel’s cellphone.
The White House developed a policy that required higher-level administration review before the N.S.A. could target a foreign leader for surveillance, calling for officials to weigh the value of the information against the risk and potential harm if the spying came to light.
The administration did not disclose at the time how many foreign leaders would be removed from routine eavesdropping, but Mr. Obama said in a January 2014 speech on surveillance policy that he had put significant new curbs in place.
“The leaders of our close friends and allies deserve to know that if I want to know what they think about an issue, I’ll pick up the phone and call them, rather than turning to surveillance,” Mr. Obama said in the speech.
He added, “Given the understandable attention that this issue has received, I have made clear to the intelligence community that unless there is a compelling national security purpose, we will not monitor the communications of heads of state and government of our close friends and allies.”