[ad_1]
From 2012 to 2015, the US is said to have spied on large-scale purchases of Danish fighter jets. Now they are doing the same in Switzerland, says an intelligence expert.
“We are in favor of fair and transparent competition.” US Ambassador to Switzerland Edward T. McMullen speaks with Swiss journalists in front of an F-35 fighter jet at Payerne.
Photo: Raphael Moser
The US intelligence service NSA apparently spied on the Danish State Department, as well as the Defense and Treasury Departments in 2015 and in previous years. Systematically. The United States wanted to gain an advantage in the Danish fighter jet procurement process at the time, as reported by the media.
In 2016, Denmark chose Lockheed Martin’s offer and ordered 27 of the F-35 models. the The spy scandal in northern Europe, which came to light because of a Danish whistleblower, appears to be interesting from a Swiss point of view. Because today it is the Swiss Confederation that is about to buy new combat aircraft.
And as in Denmark back then, Boeing’s Super Hornet and Lockheed Martin’s F-35 compete from the American side. So The question is obvious if the United States is currently spying on the Swiss fighter jet procurement process.
“No public comment”
A first request from this editorial team before Christmas comes out United States Embassy in Bern unanswered. Only after further investigation antsiteand the American by email. rethat is, for United States Embassy Employee Responsible for Public Affairs, Gaby Bloem lines up: «reThe United States does not comment publicly on alleged intelligence operations.»
Erich Schmidt-Eenboom, the well-known German author and intelligence expert, knows how to evaluate this answer. based on Findings On the Wikileaks platform he said frankly: “Those responsible for Swiss security policy must assume that the US services will receive all communications related to the acquisition of combat aircraft.ifft, spy and, through the NSA, also have the cryptological competence to read encrypted messages ».
Schmidt-Eenboom has reported that the US secret services also pursue the economic interests of their clients in Washington in friendly states of Europe.sheep. Schmidt-Eenboom refers to the Wikileaks documents, Thiefenoughhow the United States also carried out industrial and banking espionage in Germany.
AND Besides Germany’s Federal Intelligence Service hIELTS in a study from 1997: “There is agreement in the US that in the future the US intelligence services must contribute to improving the competitiveness of the national industry through greater economic intelligence (…)”
Switzerland is covered
Switzerland recently increased its forces to detect and prevent foreign espionage. What the Federal Intelligence Service (NDB) is doing in the ongoing evaluation of fighter jets is secret. NDBSpokesperson Isabelle Graber therefore it says in AnorthaskOnly the FIS does not comment on specific cases.
Is comment on their tasks and operational activities only to the head of the DDPS and the Federal Council and its control bodies, including dthat is to say Delegation of Business Audit of Parliament.
Shameless approach in Denmark
Espionage activity prohibited by Danish law around 2015 According to media reports, he had a broad base. Outsidespied has been therefore next to various Ministries and decisiongramcarriers gall the competition. Namely, Germany and Sweden, as well as several other countries in which military industries operate.
Danish TV channel DR In his investigation last year, he concluded that espionage between 2012 and 2015 indirectly contributed to Denmark eventually buying the F-35. The NSA has apparently taken advantage of a top-secret surveillance system.kooperation between the US and Denmark. The allegations against the Americans led to parliamentary investigations in Denmark last year that are still ongoing.
Base dfor form classified documents of the Danish secret service. A whistleblower made it public after initially turning to his superiors to no avail. The motivation of the Danish secret service agent, referred to as “the Danish Snowden”: the actions of the USA.services blatantly violating the interests of Denmark.
And the others?
From the Swiss point of view, the question finally arises: What about FFrance that wants to sell the Rafale, and germanythat he Eurofighter announces? Schmidt-Eenboom says French services are part of the job profile Besides the task of promoting the economic well-being of the country. There is no such provision in the framework contract of the German BND. “However, I would rather doubt that these European services can crack Swiss encryption technology.”, says dis Intelligence services expert.
