U.S. Vice President Calls Brazil to Denounce Espionage
U.S. Vice President Joe Biden called Brazil's president Friday to respond to alleged U.S. electronic spying disclosed by rogue intelligence leaker Edward Snowden, Brasilia said.
Biden lamented the negative repercussions the disclosures have had in Brazil during a conversation that lasted 25 minutes, President Dilma Rousseff's office told AFP.
The U.S. deputy leader reiterated an invitation given earlier by U.S. Ambassador Thomas Shannon for a Brazilian delegation to visit Washington for more detailed explanations, Communications Minister Helena Chagas said, according to Brazil's state news agency.
For her part, "Rousseff said that, in the name of security, one can't infringe on the privacy of Brazilian citizens and even the sovereignty of the country," the minister said.
The Brazilian president also confirmed her state visit to Washington for October 23, according to the state news agency.
Brazil's foreign minister said Monday Washington had not sufficiently responded to his country's request it explain the spying allegations.
The daily O Globo newspaper has published a series of reports on U.S. electronic espionage operations in Brazil and Latin America, based on documents leaked by Snowden, a U.S. former National Security Agency (NSA) contractor.
The newspaper said the NSA spied on Brazilian residents and companies, as well as people traveling in Brazil.
Washington also maintained a base in Brasilia to intercept foreign satellite communications, it added.
Snowden, whose passport has been revoked by Washington, has been marooned in Moscow airport's transit zone for the past three weeks, as he seeks asylum in a bid to evade U.S. espionage charges for his leaks.
Source: Agence France Presse
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