Germany may revise partnership with USA in light of recent spy scandal

German authorities said that the prospects of partnership with the United States could be called into question, should it be proved that an employee of German intelligence service BND was an American spy, German Chancellor Merkel said at a press conference in Beijing.  

According to Reuters, the German prosecutor's office said earlier that a 31-year-old German national was suspected of spying for foreign intelligence services. His identity, as well as affiliation to the type of special services were not officially specified. According to German media reports, the arrested individual worked in the Federal Intelligence Service of Germany and was accused of spying for the U.S. It was said that the German employee had been working for Washington since 2012.

German Foreign Minister addressed to U.S. Ambassador in Berlin John Emerson in connection with the incident.

In October 2013, as a result of revelations from Edward Snowden, it became known that U.S. intelligence agencies were working on the territory of Germany. In particular, they wiretapped the cellular phone of Angela Merkel.

Meanwhile, Germany may lose 25,000 jobs because of tougher political sanctions against Russia, Eckhard Cordes, the chairman of the Eastern Committee of German Economy told the Financial Times. The organization represents interests of German business, implementing projects in Eastern Europe and Russia.

"This crisis is poisoning the business environment in Russia and Ukraine. Therefore, we hope that all participants will stop it and use existing opportunities for de-escalation," said Cordes.