The European Parliament threatened Wednesday to block a landmark free trade deal between the European Union and the United States if Washington does not end its mass spying activities. Negotiators are meeting in Brussels this week for a fourth round of talks on the Transatlantic Trade & Investment Partnership (TTIP), which would create the world's largest free-trade area. But the parliament would have to approve any deal for it to come into effect.
That "could be endangered as long as blanket mass surveillance activities and the interception of communications in EU institutions and diplomatic representations are not fully stopped," the parliament said in a report adopted in a 544-78 vote.