US spying claims threaten transatlantic ties: Merkel

Earlier, Merkel made it clear that she would not put the German-US ties at risk as Berlin ruled out granting whistleblower Edward Snowden asylum in Germany which would be a diplomatic affront against the US.


German and US intelligence officials are trying to reach an anti-spying agreement, hoping to alleviate the public outcry over media reports that US intelligence agencies have monitored tens of millions of phone calls in Germany and other European countries.