France 'won't tolerate' threats to security after US spy claims

Documents showed the US spied on President Francois Hollande and his two predecessors.

PARIS: The French presidency said Wednesday it "will not tolerate any acts that threaten its security" after leaked documents apparently showed the US spied on President Francois Hollande and his two predecessors.

"Commitments were made by the US authorities," the Elysee Palace said in a statement, referring to promises by the US in late 2013 not to spy on France's leaders. "They must be remembered and strictly respected."

The United States wiretapped three French presidents, including current leader Francois Hollande, documents released online by WikiLeaks showed Tuesday.

The documents - classified as 'Top Secret' and first reported in partnership with French newspaper Liberation and the Mediapart website - also revealed that Hollande approved secret meetings on the consequences of a Greek exit from the eurozone as early as 2012.

The spying spanned 2006 to 2012, the documents showed.

The revelations prompted the French leader to call a defence council meeting first thing Wednesday "to evaluate the nature of the information published by the press on Tuesday evening and to draw useful conclusions", said one of his aides.

They also come just weeks after President Barack Obama signed into law landmark legislation ending the government's bulk telephone data dragnet, significantly reversing American policy by reining in the most controversial surveillance programme since 9/11.

Among the documents, this showed that former presidents Jacques Chirac and Nicolas Sarkozy were also spied on, are five from the US National Security Agency, including the most recent dated May 22, 2012, just days after Hollande took office.

British newspaper The Guardian reported at the time that the NSA has listened in on the phone calls of 35 world leaders. According to different reports they include the leaders of France, Mexico, Brazil.