Airbus to Sue over Industrial Espionage
The French aerospace firm Airbus has said it will seek to file a lawsuit against unknown persons in relation to allegations of industrial espionage by the National Security Agency that have surfaced in the German media.
DW reports that Airbus has asked the German government for more information regarding the matter. The company claims it has information that leads it to believe it has been the victim of industrial espionage as a result of spying cooperation between the NSA and the German intelligence agency, the BND.
The legal action by Airbus comes after reports revealed that the NSA asked the BND to spy not only on terror suspects, but also French presidency, European Commission, and Airbus. One of the specific targets belong to Airbus was its helicopter division, Eurocopter.
The media reports also suggested that the BND knew and notified the German executive branch that Angela Merkel's phone had been tapped years before it was publicly revealed in documents released by NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden.
The Guardian reports that in addition to the aforementioned targets, the NSA also requested that the BND spy on the French Foreign Ministry. The Guardian reports that the spying seems to be the result of a 2002 agreement between the German and American intelligence agencies.
The scandal is threatening to take down Thomas de Maizière, the German interior minister. German media reports have said that he knew about the spying as far back as 2008. At that time, Maizière was Merkel's chief of staff, and responsibility for overseeing the BND. This means that Maizière either knew of the spying and covered it up, or is grossly incompetent.
If the allegations of industrial espionage turn out to be true, it will create the largest crisis in cross-Atlantic relations since the end of World War II.
