German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Wednesday that she had a constructive conversation with President Barack Obama regarding the National Security Agency’s surveillance programs.
Speaking through a translator at a joint news conference with Obama in Berlin, Merkel said it’s “important, necessary” to debate the issues surrounding the surveillance. She noted “quite a lot of instances” wherein Germany had obtained information from the United States.
“I think today was an important first step in the right direction,” Merkel said of her discussions with Obama.
