Fugitive US leaker Edward Snowden on Friday offered Berlin help exposing activities of US intelligence services in Germany, but demanded safe passage to avoid extradition to the United States.
The offer was set out in a letter – released in Berlin by German opposition lawmaker Hans-Christian Stroebele – who conducted three hours of secret talks with Snowden on Thursday in Moscow, where the former National Security Agency contractor has lived in temporary asylum since August.
“Though the outcome of my efforts has been demonstrably positive, my government continues to treat dissent as defection and seeks to criminalise political speech with felony charges that provide no defence,” Snowden, 30, wrote in the letter, addressed To Whom It May Concern.
“I look forward to speaking with you in your country when the situation is resolved, and thank you for your efforts to uphold international law that protect us all.” Stroebele agreed to deliver the letter to authorities in Germany, where allegations about spying by US intelligence services, including the tapping of Chancellor Angela Merkel’s mobile phone, have sparked outrage and strained relations between Washington and Berlin.
German authorities were prepared to meet Snowden, Interior Minister Hans-Peter Friedrich said on Friday.
The US government reiterated its desire to bring Snowden back to the United States to face charges.
“Despite recent reports or recent pronouncements from Mr Snowden, as we’ve stated many times before, he’s accused of leaking classified information, faces felony charges here in the United States, and we believe he should be returned as soon as possible, where he will be accorded full due process and protections applicable under US law,” State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said.
US officials held talks this week in Washington with German and European Union officials on the surveillance and resulting diplomatic fallout.
White House spokesman Jay Carney said the US believed the talks had been “effective and useful in making clear how much we value those relationships.” Stroebele, 74, said he had agreed with Snowden not to reveal details of their discussions, which also touched on allegations surrounding surveillance of Merkel’s phone.
The maverick Green Party member said Snowden wanted to answer questions from a US congressional committee but did not want to testify on Russian soil.
“(Snowden is) a significant witness, also for Germany,” Stroebele said. “He can imagine coming to Germany.” Snowden would need assurances that he could remain in Germany or in a similar country and that he would be safe there, Stroebele said, suggesting a grant of safe passage. He said that Snowden would be willing to come to Germany, “if this is clarified and regulated.” Safe passage is of key interest to Snowden, especially after a July incident in which the Bolivian president’s plane was forced to land in Vienna after departing Russia, amid Western suspicions that Snowden might be on board. The incident was widely seen as an attempt by US authorities to capture Snowden.
One of the first Western public officials to meet with Snowden, Stroebele described Snowden as “healthy and cheerful” and said he could do his own shopping, despite restrictions on his daily life.
Snowden’s lawyer in Russia, Anatoli Kutscherena, told the Itar-Tass news agency that his client had not received any requests from Germany.
US Secretary of State John Kerry conceded on Thursday that some US data surveillance has gone “too far.” In remarks via teleconference to an open government summit in London, Kerry defended espionage as necessary in the fight against terrorism, but conceded restraint was necessary.
“In some cases, I acknowledge to you, as has the president, that some of these actions have reached too far, and we are going to make sure that does not happen in the future,” Kerry said.
Stroebele, a member of the parliamentary committee overseeing German intelligence services, was expected to update the panel next week about his meeting with Snowden, committee chairman Thomas Oppermann said.
The German government was not informed of Stroebele’s trip, government spokesman Steffen Seibert said.
The German government said no asylum application had been submitted.