Possible case of political espionage in Greece “unacceptable” in Brussels

The European Commission said Tuesday that, if confirmed, the case of espionage recorded in Greece and involving opposition leader Nikos Androulakis is “unacceptable”.

“Our position is clear. Any attempt by the national security services to illegally access data of citizens, including journalists and political opponents, if confirmed, is unacceptable,” said EU Interior spokeswoman Anitta Hipper at a press conference.

In this regard, the European Executive has urged Member States to “monitor and control” the operation of their Intelligence services to ensure that they comply with Human Rights. “This is absolutely important, that they guarantee the protection of personal information, as well as the safety of journalists and freedom of expression,” Hipper added.

In any case, Brussels has recalled that investigating this type of cases is the competence of the member states of the bloc, reiterating that it expects any accusation to be investigated and to restore public confidence in these cases.

The political news in Greece has been splashed by an alleged case of espionage against the leader of the Panhellenic Socialist Movement (PASOK) party, opponent of the prime minister, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, after detecting an attempt to install the Predator ‘software’ on his cell phone.

For his part, Mitsotakis has rejected this Monday that his government is involved in this case of espionage. “What has been done may have been legal, but it was wrong. I know nothing about it and obviously I would never approve of it,” the Greek leader assured during a speech televised by ERT channel.