Brasilia -
Brazilian federal police said on Tuesday they were keen to interview fugitive intelligence leaker Edward Snowden about “cyberspying” by the US in this country.
Jose Alberto Legas, the federal police's intelligence chief, made the comments during a hearing by a Senate investigative panel looking into press disclosures of massive US electronic snooping on Brazil.
“One of the aspects of the investigation is to hear Snowden. For us, it is extremely important and crucial,” he stressed.
The Senate committee is also seeking a videoconference with Snowden, who has sought refuge in Russia.
House of Deputies members have already approached the Russian embassy here to establish contact with the former US National Security Agency (NSA) contractor.
Snowden is wanted in the United States for espionage and other charges after leaking details of the NSA's alleged global snooping activities.
Based on documents leaked by Snowden, Brazilian media reported that the NSA intercepted Brazilian government communications, those of state-run energy giant Petrobras, as well as phone calls and emails of millions of Brazilians.
The disclosures led Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff to slam the United States in an address to the United Nations last month and to scrap a planned state visit to Washington.
Meanwhile on Tuesday, Brazil held ministerial level talks with India on how best to protect their surveillance systems from external prying.
“There are many many issues that have to be tackled. We are collaborating and co-operating at the UN level to find some architecture,” said Indian External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid.
Khurshid said he had urged Brazil to share their thoughts on the issue following talks with Brazilian counterpart Luiz Alberto Figueiredo in Brasilia. - Sapa-AFP