Kerry heads to Germany to quell spying uproar

Secretary of State John Kerry is headed to Germany on Friday to try to repair some of the damage caused by revelations that the U.S. listened in on Chancellor Angela Merkel’s cellphone.

Kerry is expected to meet with Merkel and German Foreign Minister Frank Walter in Berlin, according to the State Department. He will also participate in the prestigious Munich Security Conference over the weekend.

{mosads}State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said Kerry will meet with senior German officials in Berlin to discuss bilateral cooperation.

“In Munich, Secretary Kerry and Secretary [of Defense Chuck] Hagel will participate in the 50th Munich Security Conference. At the conference, Secretary Kerry and Secretary Hagel will underscore the United States’ commitment to our strong trans-Atlantic relationship and our work to promote peace, democracy and prosperity within the region and beyond,” she said.

The visit comes amid continuing German ire over the revelations of former National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden. Talk of a formal no-spying agreement between the two countries has largely vanished, according to Germany’s Der Spiegel magazine, but German lawmakers are considering a petition for the creation of a special committee to investigate the NSA allegations. 

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