EU / US relations threatened over NSA Mass Surveillance

They are going to be even more upset when they read today's revelations about GCHQ & NSA
http://ian56.blogspot.co.uk/2013/06/gchq-is-hoovering-up-everything-and.html

Amid NSA spying scandal, the gloves are off for EU's justice chief

Summary: No longer is the EU standing for U.S. lobbying and policy pushing. The EU's Justice Commissioner Viviane Reding is back in the trenches. The gloves are off, and she's fighting back.

While the EU may not have known the specifics of the National Security Agency's (NSA) foreign dragnet surveillance program, two years later Europe's justice chief is enraged.

The European Commission was aware in mid-2011 of the extent and reach of the U.S.' prying eyes. By opening the door for data protection ceasefire negotiations, EU Justice Commissioner Viviane Reding trusted her transatlantic ally to stick to its word.

In a letter obtained by ZDNet, the EU justice chief hints at consequences to come for the U.S. government if European citizens were targeted by the NSA's PRISM program.

In a strongly worded letter to U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder after the NSA leaks came to light, she warned that the 27 member state bloc may as a result reconsider its long-standing diplomatic relationship with the White House.

But now, those concerns over the theoretical transfers of EU data to third countries have become a brutal realization, and Reding is no longer playing nicely.

http://www.zdnet.com/amid-nsa-spying-scandal-the-gloves-are-off-for-eus-justice-chief-7000017132/

Previously

EU 'assessing U.S. relationship' amid PRISM spying claims
http://www.zdnet.com/eu-assessing-u-s-relationship-amid-prism-spying-claims-7000016794/