#UK: Chinese Ride-Share App Raises Spying Concerns In Parliament

[world politics news]

 

British MPs are calling for a ride-hailing app based in Beijing, China to be blocked from launching in Britain amid concerns that users’ data will be harvested by Chinese spies.

DiDi Global has obtained its first licences to operate in Salford, Sheffield, Wolverhampton and Manchester. It is expected to seek further licences as it competes for market share with Uber, the American ride-share app.

[FULL STORY HERE]

World Politics News is dedicated to raising Americans' knowledge of political events, elections, and legislation throughout the world.

#GERMANY: Gov't Uses Spy Agency To Spy On Opposition Party

[world politics news]

The populist party Alternative for Germany (Alternative für Deutschland/AfD) is to be spied on by Germany’s intelligence agency under suspicion of posing a threat to democracy, according to media reports.

The Bundesamt für Verfassungsschutz (BfV) spy agency is now able by law to monitor the phones of AfD members and spy on its activities as a suspected extreme rightwing organisation

The party argues the decision could affect its chances in the autumn federal elections. It is currently the largest opposition party in parliament.

[FULL STORY HERE]

World Politics News is dedicated to raising Americans' knowledge of political events, elections, and legislation throughout the world.

#NEWZEALAND: Member Of Parliament Admits "Training Spies" For China

[world politics news]

Chinese interference in the New Zealand political system is in the spotlight with the news that  National Party MP Jian Yang, who admitted to training spies for the Chinese government, will retire at the next election.

Yang had faced numerous allegations of being a spy for the Chinese government in his time as an MP.

His resignation comes as a Parliamentary committee is on the verge of completing an explosive inquiry into the extent of Chinese interference in the New Zealand political system, which is alleged to extend beyond just Wellington and into local governments up and down the country.

[FULL STORY HERE]

World Politics News is dedicated to raising Americans' knowledge of political events, elections, and legislation throughout the world.

#ISRAEL: Lawmakers Allow Security Agency To Use Contact Tracing Of Cell Phones For COVID-19 Cases

[world politics news]

Israeli lawmakers have voted in favor of a new law authorizing the Israel Security Agency (Shin Bet) to track cellular network data of citizens as part of the state’s efforts to contain the spread of Covid-19. Of the parliament’s 120 members, 53 voted in favor of the government-backed bill and 38 against.

[FULL STORY HERE]

World Politics News is dedicated to raising Americans' knowledge of political events, elections, and legislation throughout the world.

#AUSTRIA: Arrest Of Accused Russian Spy Strains Relations Between The Two Allies

[world politics news]

The arrest of a suspected Russian spy in Austria has caused a rare diplomatic dust-up between Austria and Russia. Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz said a probe had been launched into a colonel suspected of spying for Russia for several decades. Russia says Austria's "unfounded accusations" in a spy scandal were unacceptable, after the suspect in the case was taken into custody. Russia has strong ties with Austria, one of its few European allies.

[FULL STORY HERE]

World Politics News is dedicated to raising Americans' knowledge of political events, elections, and legislation throughout the world.

#SWEDEN: Russian Foreign Min. Lavrov Mocks Fears Of Russian Interference In 2018 Election

[world politics news]

Sergey Lavrov has labelled Sweden's prime minister "childish" for expressing fears over Russian influence in Sweden's election next year. Prime Minister Stefan Löfven said in January he could not rule out the possibility that Russia may try to influence the Swedish general election in 2018.

[FULL STORY HERE]

#UK: House Of Lords Approves Bill Giving Sweeping New Spy Powers To Gov't

[world politics news]

The House of Lords has passed the Investigatory Powers Bill, putting the huge spying powers on their way to becoming law within weeks. The bill – which forces internet companies to keep records on their users for up to a year, and allows the Government to force companies to hack into or break things they've sold so they can be spied on – has been fought against by privacy campaigners and technology companies including Apple and Twitter.

[FULL STORY HERE]

#RUSSIA: Putin Promises To Bring Back KGB Spy Agency; Could Quell Dissent Before 2018 Election

[world politics news]

Just hours after a stunning victory this week in parliamentary elections, Russian Pres. Vlaidmir Putin has pledge to bring back  the oppressive KGB spy agency, which was eliminated in 1991 after the fall of the Soviet Union.

[FULL STORY HERE]

#SWITZERLAND: Defense Min. Defends Extended Security Powers Ahead Of Sept 25 Vote

[world politics news]

Swiss Defense Minister Guy Parmelin says Switzerland is currently not adequately protected against terrorist threats. His government is seeking greater security powers in a Sept. 25 nationwide vote. The new law would allow intelligence services to conduct preventative monitoring, including tapping telephones, bugging rooms and hacking computers.

#BURMA: Parliament Supports Gov't Plan To Deepen Military Ties With Russia

[world politics news]

Burma’s Parliament has approved Pres. Htin Kyaw’s proposal to deepen and formalize the country’s longtime military cooperation with Russia. Some lawmakers expressed concern over how the agreement might affect Burma’s ability to exercise an active and independent foreign policy. The agreement includes exchanging information on political and military issues, such as international security and counter-terrorism measures.

#THENETHERLANDS: Cabinet Ordered To Re-Think Legislation Allowing Spy Agencies To Hide Internet Snooping

[world politics news]

Cabinet ministers have been ordered to reconsider their refusal to publish how often the security services tap people’s phones and internet. The Council of State, the highest Dutch administrative court, said on Wednesday that the government needs to improve the reasoning behind its refusal to publish the details. The case was brought by internet privacy campaigner Bits of Freedom.

#FRANCE: Pres. Hollande Seeks Answers From #AngelaMerkel Over German Spying On Frmr. French Foreign Min.

[world politics news]

President Francois Hollande called Thursday for Berlin to supply all the information it had after reports Germany's foreign intelligence service spied on Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius, saying it was not the kind of behaviour he expected between friendly countries.

#EU: European Parliament Adopts Non-Binding Call For EU Nations To Grant #Snowden Asylum

[world politics news]

The European Parliament has called on EU member states to drop all criminal charges against Edward Snowden and protect him against extradition to the United States. MEPs voted 285 votes to 281 in favor of a resolution that the NSA whistle-blower should be allowed to seek safe asylum in the EU.

#EU: Preliminary Ruling May Force Facebook To Choose Between NSA Data Sharing And Doing Business In Europe

[world politics news]

You can’t have it both ways. That was the stark message delivered to Facebook, the European Commission yesterday by Yves Bot, advocate general of the European Court of Justice. To Facebook and other US companies collecting user data within the EU, the ruling was clear: you can either operate in Europe or you can collaborate with NSA surveillance, not both.

#GERMANY: Merkel Accused Of Lying About NSA Spying List; US Sources Say She Could Release Names to Legislators

[world politics news]

German officials have recently used the lack of American permission as an excuse not to release a list of German targets passed by the NSA to Germany's foreign intelligence agency, but media reports reveal US officials have said Merkel's government could make the final decision whether to reveal the list to parliamentarians.

#USA: Wikileaks Reveals NSA Spied On Current, Past French President's Phone Calls

[world politics news]

The US National Security Agency spied on French presidents Jacques Chirac, Nicolas Sarkozy and Francois Hollande, WikiLeaks said in a press statement published on Tuesday, citing top secret intelligence reports and technical documents.

#GERMANY: Parliament's Computers Have Been Hacked For Six Months, Agency Reveals

[world politics news]

Unknown attackers have been targeting the computer network of the Bundestag, the German parliament for around six months, rather than since May, when the attacks became known. The hackers used several waves of 'Trojan' viruses to gradually extend their access to the network piece by piece. The infiltration was only discovered in May.

#GERMANY: #AngelaMerkel Defends Cooperation With American Spy Agency In Growing Spy Scandal

[world politics news]

Chancellor Angela Merkel is defending the German intelligence agency amid growing criticism of her knowledge of its activities from within her own government. Merkel said spying among friends "should not happen" but emphasized the importance of cooperating with the US National Security Agency to fight terrorist threats.

#GERMANY: Spy Agency Deleted 12,000 Requests From NSA To Spy On European Officials

[world politics news]

German Chancellor Angela Merkel has faced a firestorm over her actions that allowed the US National Security Agency spy on German citizens, but it's been revealed that Germany's spy agency effectively deleted 12,000 requests to spy on Germans and other Europeans.

#CANADA: Conservatives To Remove Protests And Dissent From Anti-Terror Bill

[world politics news]

The majority Conservatives will put forward four changes to their proposed terrorism law, clarifying that protests and dissent do not qualify as national security threats. Current wording allows "lawful" protests, which some assert could criminalize civil disobedience.