Angela Merkel said on Saturday that new allegations of US spying showed Berlin and Washington were completely at odds over how they viewed the role of intelligence, and she hoped German action would persuade the United States not to spy on partners. Her comments to German broadcaster ZDF come two days after her government told the CIA station chief in Berlin to leave the country, in a dramatic display of anger after German officials unearthed two suspected spies.
On Friday, White House press secretary Josh Earnest told reporters "when differences arise, we're committed to resolving those differences through the established private channels... we don't believe that trying to resolve them through the media is appropriate." The scandal has chilled relations with Washington to levels not seen since Merkel's predecessor opposed the US invasion of Iraq in 2003. It follows allegations last year that Merkel's phone was bugged by American agents.
Asked how angry she was on hearing of the suspected spies, one of whom worked for German foreign intelligence (BND), the other at the defence ministry, Merkel said, "it is not about how angry I was. For me it is a sign that we have fundamentally different conceptions of the work of the intelligence services."
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