CIA Halts Spying In Europe

[Purveyor]

Source: Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The CIA has curbed spying on friendly governments in Western Europe in response to the furor over a German caught selling secrets to the United States and the Edward Snowden revelations of classified information held by the National Security Agency, according to current and former U.S. officials.

The pause in decades of espionage, which remains partially in effect, was designed to give CIA officers time to examine whether they were being careful enough and to evaluate whether spying on allies is worth running the risk of discovery, said a U.S. official who has been briefed on the situation.

Under the stand-down order, case officers in Europe largely have been forbidden from undertaking "unilateral operations" such as meeting with sources they have recruited within allied governments. Such clandestine meetings are the bedrock of spying.

CIA officers are still allowed to meet with their counterparts in the host country's intelligence service, conduct joint operations with host country services and conduct operations with the approval of the host government. Recently, unilateral operations targeting third country nationals - Russians in France, for example -were restarted. But most meetings with sources who are host nationals remain on hold, as do new recruitments.

The CIA declined to comment.

Read more: http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_CIA_EUROPE_SPYING_PAUSE?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2014-09-19-21-42-19

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Well that settles it then...

[baldguy]

1. Of course the Obama haters on the Right will try to color this as a BAD thing.

And the misguided Obama haters on the Left will agree with them.

[Autumn]

2. So when will they stop spying on Americans?

[FrodosPet]

4. Not very soon

When even one of the most progressive senators believes we need to step it up.

-------------------------------------------

http://thehill.com/policy/international/216559-warren-destroying-isis-should-be-our-no-1-priority

~ snip ~

Asked about the dozens of Americans who have reportedly joined ISIS, Warren noted that the U.S. should be "stepping up our efforts to track where people go when they leave the United States."

"The terrorists have moved, and we have to move in response," she said, adding part of that "means we're going to have to change in fundamental ways how we monitor our citizens when they go abroad."

~ snip ~

[karynnj]

9. I travel abroad and have absolutely no problem with being asked where I intend to go and why

I know that this will horrify most people here, but I really don't have any problem with the government asking me - when I am leaving the country on the passport they gave me - enough questions that they can pigeon hole me into - retiree couple traveling for pleasure and personal education.

Likewise, my 2 PHD program daughters, if traveling out of the country, are easily pegged for what they are. Anyone travelling for business has an even easier identity - they are going to X to work on Y.

I would suspect that the number of people that can't easily be identified as not a problem is very small - even with a pretty strict screen. The smaller the group is, if you assume that most of the "bad guys" fall in that group, the higher percentage of that group will actually warrant surveillance. This assumes that the process works and that the majority of "bad guys" fail to pass. If that is not true, then there is no point to the program at all.

I am aware, that part of my lack of concern for how it affects me or my family comes from the privilege we enjoy as white and middle class. The dangers are 1) racial profiling and 2) that the same people will repeatedly be given the greater scrutiny even if they are innocent.

What it may come down to is balancing how much unpleasant questioning that people who are innocent and who will be suspected must endure vs any real gains in monitoring real problems.

[Autumn]

10. I'm okay with security asking what country a person is traveling to.

Passports and all that stuff.

[candelista]

12. I'm disappointed that Elizabeth Warren got onboard with this.

The US has to "monitor" all its citizens when they travel in other countries? Isn't monitoring us all the time at home enough?

[grasswire]

3. what is their definition of "curbed"?

...considering this excerpt: "The pause in decades of espionage, which remains partially in effect, was designed to give CIA officers time to examine ..."

double speak

[candelista]

13. "Curbed."

[hughee99]

15. I'll bet it's not the same thing as "halt".

In any case, I don't believe a word of it, and I imagine neither do any foreign intelligence services.

[xocet]

6. Yeah, right. n/t

[MannyGoldstein]

7. "I'm telling you, it's really stopping"

Why are you people laughing?

[Aerows]

16. He's the least untruthful

person in the NSA.

[blkmusclmachine]

8. Read between the lines, folks. Read between the lines.

[candelista]

11. "A pause which remains partially in effect"?

I am underwhelmed.

[roamer65]

14. It's called outsourcing.

They'll just get the info from other sources.