US, Japan in Touch on NSA Espionage Scandal - State Department

Governments of Tokyo and Washington communicated on the situation with WikiLeaks revelations that the National Security Agency (NSA) spied on the Japanese authorities, according to US State Department Deputy Spokesperson Mark Toner.

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — Tokyo and Washington have been in touch on the situation with WikiLeaks revelations that the National Security Agency (NSA) spied on the Japanese authorities, US State Department Deputy Spokesperson Mark Toner told journalists on Monday.

“Our two governments have been in communication on this issue,” Toner said.

Japan's Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga told journalists that Tokyo is waiting for the United States to clarify situation with the revelations concerning the NSA spying on the Japanese government and businesses.

On Friday, WikiLeaks published a series of secret NSA documents detailing US eavesdropping on 35 targets in Japan, including high-ranking officials.

The NSA telephone interception target list included the Japanese Cabinet Office members, the Central Bank as well as the finance and economy ministries, Mitsubishi’s natural gas division and the Mitsui conglomerate’s petroleum division.

Japan is the latest NSA’s spying target among the US allies, uncovered by WikiLeaks. The revelation followed recently published documents unveiling the agency's eavesdropping practices on French, Saudi and German high-ranking officials.