Quadriga
It's reported that Germany is the most heavily monitored country in the EU, with data on around half a billion communications being collected each month. And, according to the leaked documents, the US has been spying on other European allies too - targets include diplomatic missions belonging to France, Italy, Greece and the EU itself.
The US has tried to play down the claims, saying its no surprise countries spy on each other. But in Europe, the issue isn't going away. In Germany, opposition politicans have suggested the government knew more about the Americans' activities than they're letting on. In France, President Hollande said there could be no negotiations with the US on any issue until the spying stops - threatening to derail talks on a free trade agreement between the US and the EU.
How serious is the threat to the relationship between the EU and the US? Is the free trade deal really at risk? Or have European governments in fact long known what the Americans were doing?
Tell us what you think: Spy Scandal: Transatlantic Trust on Trial
Our guests:
Michael Stürmer – has been the senior correspondent at the German daily "Die Welt" since 1989. Born in Kassel in 1938, Stürmer studied History, Philosophy and Languages in London, Berlin and Marburg. He is also Professor of Modern History at the University of Erlangen.
Markus Beckedahl – Since 2002, Beckedahl has been blogging about politics in a digital society at netzpolitik.org, an award-winning blog widely read across the German-speaking parts of the world. He also serves as an expert to the German parliament's Enquete Commission on Internet and Digital Society and is a member of the media council for the Berlin-Brandenburg Media Broadcasting Authority.
Daryl Lindsey – has been the editor since 2004 of Spiegel International, the English-language website of Der Spiegel magazine. He has worked for a range of American and German publications, including salon.com and the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung. He was born in California and now lives in Berlin.