European Space Agency ESA's Sentinel-2-625 satellite.
The EU want their own fleet of espionage drones. The federalists with the God complex also want surveillance satellites and airplanes. The fleet would would be under the command and control of Barones Ashton. The EU already has some sort of NSA, an intelligence analysis Centre called INTCEN (log on July 26), also resorting under the Ashton's 'foreign policy' outfit, the European External Action Service (EEAS). It is supposed to be the beginning of an European army with its own equipment and operations.
The British are furious! Sources within the government have told the Telegraph, that the European Commission and Ashton want military command and communication systems for internal security and defense purposes. Plans will drawn up shortly.
The idea appears to be rooted in the recent NSA mass surveillance scandals uncovered by Edward Snowden. Europe gets its data from the Americans, but the EU believes they can no longer be trusted. It's a an excuse, of cource. Because even more important, it will bring European integration another step closer, an EU source has said to the paper.
The commission is currently assessing with EEAS its dual purpose common requirements. On that basis a proposal shall be made. An EU source has confirmed the reports.
The British government is resisting the plans, and that is probably it. Ashton, the Commission and France, backed by Germany, Italy, Spain and Poland are supporting the plans. It will be on the agenda for the summit in December.
The UK has a veto but the supporting countries have said they will use a legal mechanism created by the Treaty of Lisbon to bypass the veto. But that on the other hand will cause a rift within NATO.
British MEP for the Conservatives, Geoffrey Van Orden, has charged the Commission with being "obsessed" with promoting its military ambitions. He said:
"It would be alarming if the EU – opaque, unaccountable, bureaucratic and desperately trying to turn itself into a federal state – were to try and create an intelligence gathering capability of its own. This is something that we need to stop in its tracks before it is too late".
Nigel Farage, the leader of UKIP, has called the plans a "sinister development". "These are very scary people, and these revelations should give any lover of liberty pause for thought over the ambitions of the EU elite." The thinktank Open Europe has warned that the EU...
"has absolutely no democratic mandate for actively controlling and operating military and security capabilities. The fact is European countries have different views on defence and this is best served by intergovernmental cooperation, not by European Commission attempts at nation-building"Pawel Swidlicki, analyst at Open Europe has said.
The spy drones and secure command systems can be linked to an espionage satellite project costing over 4 billion euros called Copernicus which will be used to provide 'imaging capabilities to support Common Security and Defence Policy missions and operations'.
Currently Copernicus will be operated by the European Space Agency. It is part of the Sentinel system of satellites, which is costing British taxpayers over 500 million euros. Previously known as the Global Monitoring for Environment and Security project, which is due to become operational next year.
Currently Copernicus will be operated by the European Space Agency. It is part of the Sentinel system of satellites, which is costing British taxpayers over 500 million euros. Previously known as the Global Monitoring for Environment and Security project, which is due to become operational next year.
(Source)