EU officials try to convince MEPs to back US data deal

(STRASBOURG) - EU officials struggled Tuesday to persuade European lawmakers to let US justice authorities have access to personal data for use in "terror" probes, warning of a security vacuum if they refuse.

The deputies vote Thursday on a transatlantic data deal which entered force for nine months last week and allows for information to be lifted from the interbank transfer system SWIFT to help identify bombers and their associates.

A key parliament civil liberties committee has already rejected the accord despite appeals from the United States and EU nations, and Thursday's vote is on a knife-edge, according to officials in Brussels.

In Strasbourg, European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso offered to give the deputies access to classified parts of future international agreements in an effort to win their support.

"The commission welcomes the idea of an inter-institutional agreement enabling the parliament to have easy access to the classified parts of international agreements on which it enjoys the right of consent," he said.

He also told reporters that "insofar as it is in the commission's powers, we will keep parliament fully and immediately informed at all stages of the procedure."

He added: "I trust that this position will reassure the parliament on negotiation of the long-term agreement, and I hope that this reassurance paves the way for a positive vote by the parliament on the interim agreement."

In a letter to the assembly's chairman, the EU's Spanish presidency promised the lawmakers that their concerns would be taken into account when a longer-term agreement is negotiated.

The assembly's primary concern is that personal information, possibly including data from electronic bank payments, could be transferred to US authorities and handed on to other governments.

Lawmakers, who will debate the agreement Wednesday, also fear the interim deal could set dangerous precedents and tie EU hands in future negotiations.

Earlier Tuesday an EU diplomat warned of possible dangers, as the 27 member countries and the United States try to convince the assembly to support it.

"We'll have a situation where Europe does not have access to information that it has now. We think there will be a security gap," the diplomat said.

The data "has helped us to track people down," he said, adding that "if the agreement falls, you lose oversight" over US use of the information.

The parliament was elected only last June and has been granted important new powers in justice, police and immigration matters under the Lisbon Treaty of reforms, which entered force in December.

"These people (the lawmakers) now have additional responsibilities to go with their additional powers: the responsibility to protect European citizens," the diplomat said.

On Saturday US National Security Advisor James Jones insisted the deal has helped save lives.

"This programme has safeguards. It protects privacy. It has prevented terrorist attacks and saved lives, including here in Europe," he said.

In a letter to the president of the assembly, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton promised to cooperate with the parliament in negotiating the long-term accord and send experts to Europe to help address concerns.

The Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication (SWIFT), based near Brussels, deals with trillions of dollars in global transactions daily between nearly 8,000 financial institutions in 200-plus countries.

In 2006 SWIFT admitted that it had provided US authorities with some personal data in the wake of the September 11 attacks in 2001 for the purpose of fighting extremists but insisted it had done its utmost to protect privacy.