Brazilian president's U.S. state visit postponed over alleged spying

[Lankan Ranger]

Brazilian president's U.S. state visit postponed over alleged spying

Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff's state visit to Washington next month postponed due to controversy over reports the U.S. government was spying on her communications.

Brazil protested recent disclosures of National Security Agency surveillance, which were included in media reports citing information apparently leaked by Edward Snowden, a former agency contractor who previously admitted leaking U.S. surveillance information to journalists.

A White House statement announcing the postponement said President Barack Obama had previously ordered a thorough review of American intelligence activities, but it acknowledged that process would take several months to complete.

Brazil still is not satisfied with the situation.

"The conditions for a state visit on the previously agreed date haven't been provided," Rousseff's office said.

But the White House said the two agreed to a postponement because they did not want the visit to be "overshadowed by a single bilateral issue, no matter how important or challenging the issue may be" and that the trip would be rescheduled.

"The president has said that he understands and regrets the concerns disclosures of alleged U.S. intelligence activities have generated in Brazil and made clear that he is committed to working together with President Rousseff and her government in diplomatic channels to move beyond this issue as a source of tension in our bilateral relationship," the White House said.

The reports alleged the NSA spied on Rousseff's mobile phone and e-mail communications as well as those of many of her advisers and oil giant Petrobras.

Brazilian president's U.S. state visit postponed over alleged spying - CNN.com

 

[idune]

Argentina, Brazil agree on cyber-defense alliance against US espionage

Defense ministers of Brazil and Argentina have pledged to cooperate closely to improve cyber defense capabilities following revelations of the scale of US spying on Latin American countries.

“We need to reflect on how we cooperate to face these new forms of attack,” Brazil's defense minister, Celso Amorim, said at a conference in Buenos Aires.

“We have established that we will hold a meeting in Brasilia before the end of the year to intensify our complementarity in the matter of cyber defense,” Argentine defense minister Agustin Rossi said after talks with his Brazilian counterpart.

The ministers signed a broader military cooperation agreement on Friday.

The countries have agreed that later this year, Brazil will host a bilateral cyber security meeting. And starting in 2014 Brazil will provide cyber warfare training to Argentine officers.

The combined efforts will allow Brazil and Argentina to “diminish situations of vulnerability,” Rossi said.

Amorim noted the countries’ software industries have “great capacity” that could support any initiatives in the cyber defense area.

The scandal that prompted the countries to boost their cyber security broke after former NSA contractor Edward Snowden revealed that the NSA’s spy program encompasses most countries in Latin America.

Early September, Brazil’s TV Globo reported that the NSA intercepted telephone calls and e-mails of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff and Mexican leader Enrique Pena Nieto. A week later is was revealed that the US government also retrieved key data on a number of issues including the oil market, drugs trade and political movements in the Latin American countries


To smother the scandal, US President Barack Obama pledged to work with Brazil and Mexico to address their concerns over US spying.

Obama “committed himself to responding to the Brazilian government,” Rousseff said at the G-20 summit in Russia and whether she makes a planned state visit to Washington next month depends on his response.

US spying was not driven by security or anti-terrorism concerns, but by "economic and strategic interests," Rousseff said this week, demanding that the US take "concrete measures” to stop such espionage.

Argentina, Brazil agree on cyber-defense alliance against US espionage — RT News

Argentina, Brazil agree on cyber-defense alliance against US espionage

Defense ministers of Brazil and Argentina have pledged to cooperate closely to improve cyber defense capabilities following revelations of the scale of US spying on Latin American countries.

“We need to reflect on how we cooperate to face these new forms of attack,” Brazil's defense minister, Celso Amorim, said at a conference in Buenos Aires.

“We have established that we will hold a meeting in Brasilia before the end of the year to intensify our complementarity in the matter of cyber defense,” Argentine defense minister Agustin Rossi said after talks with his Brazilian counterpart.

The ministers signed a broader military cooperation agreement on Friday.

The countries have agreed that later this year, Brazil will host a bilateral cyber security meeting. And starting in 2014 Brazil will provide cyber warfare training to Argentine officers.

The combined efforts will allow Brazil and Argentina to “diminish situations of vulnerability,” Rossi said.

Amorim noted the countries’ software industries have “great capacity” that could support any initiatives in the cyber defense area.

The scandal that prompted the countries to boost their cyber security broke after former NSA contractor Edward Snowden revealed that the NSA’s spy program encompasses most countries in Latin America.

Early September, Brazil’s TV Globo reported that the NSA intercepted telephone calls and e-mails of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff and Mexican leader Enrique Pena Nieto. A week later is was revealed that the US government also retrieved key data on a number of issues including the oil market, drugs trade and political movements in the Latin American countries


To smother the scandal, US President Barack Obama pledged to work with Brazil and Mexico to address their concerns over US spying.

Obama “committed himself to responding to the Brazilian government,” Rousseff said at the G-20 summit in Russia and whether she makes a planned state visit to Washington next month depends on his response.

US spying was not driven by security or anti-terrorism concerns, but by "economic and strategic interests," Rousseff said this week, demanding that the US take "concrete measures” to stop such espionage.

http://rt.com/news/brazil-argentina-cyber-defense-879/