That's the fact: France is complaining before the WTO for illegal "handlings" from USA, and it has launched a suit against both US and UK more or less evident complicity in this affair.

This is to be paralleled to the fact that Scientology is so efficient as a service of information working underground for NSA, for some companies and for the US Congress and FBI/CIA. It is said since at least end 1999 in europe, but now, if a complaint has been done, following another complaint from France against illegal protectionnism from US govt, it shows the real intentions behind protecting criminal cults. As we know that the US govt had already protected maffiosi/drug dealing interests in Panama for villainous causes, it's no surprise that he could keep on attacking Europe by the way of its other maffias.

The Americans allegedly have been using eavesdropping centres in Britain and other countries to snatch major business contracts from France.

"It is unusual for one country to try to put an ally in the dock like this," said Paris public prosecutor Jean-Pierre Dintilhac, who is leading the inquiry. "But France's security is at stake.

"We have started our probe following allegations that the Americans, abetted by the British, are undermining French industry and the national economy."

In another development, the European Parliament in Strasbourg will vote today on setting up its own inquiry into high-tech snooping by the Americans. The Clinton administration has boasted that US industry is being boosted by what it calls "aggressive advocacy", estimating that it has gained to the tune of up to £35billion.

That "advocacy" takes the form of using satellite technology to intercept telephone calls, e-mails and faxes from competitors overseas in order to get the latest business information.

Information is passed on to US bidders, giving them the advantage in deals.

Among contracts France claims to have lost to the US after state-sponsored snoopers divulged business negotiations was a £1million radar deal for a European fighter plane. The order went to US firm Raytheon just as France's Thomson group were about to sign on the dotted line.

France also lost a £3million aircraft contract in Saudi Arabia to McDonnell Douglas. The European Airbus consortium claims it lost orders because the Americans had been let in on secret negotiations with potential customers.

Mr Dintilhac has called in his country's own secret service, the Directorate for National Surveillance, to look into the damaging role of America's CIA and National Security Agency in the spy network, codenamed Echelon.

The network was set up in the Sixties to protect national security but since the end of the Cold War it has been used for information piracy.

Ironically, while the Echelon network is part-operated by Britain's GCHQ, British firms have also fallen victim to the corporate eavesdropping, seeing contracts go to their US business rivals. To intercept and filter telephone, fax and e-mail messages, the Americans are using a satellite data processing centre at Menwith Hill in North Yorkshire, a former RAF base. Going under the codename F83, this "big ears" centre has 1,400 engineers, computer experts and linguists.

Mr Dintilhac said the information obtained by the satellite spies is relayed through the CIA to the NSA, which has a staff of 40,000 and an annual budget of £2.5billion.

James Woolsey, former head of the CIA, admitted recently: "The US has secretly compiled intelligence information to the disadvantage of European firms."

British MEPs are expected to oppose a move today by the Greens in the European Parliament to examine the Echelon operation.If a majority votes for an inquiry, 36 MEPs will become members of a special investigating committee. Among the questions which the Greens want to put to an inquiry: "Is European industry at risk from global interception of information?"

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