A new batch of documents released by WikiLeaks revealed the CIA’s spying operations during the presidential election in France in 2012. According to the documents, the CIA’s operations centered on monitoring the agendas of the candidates and political parties involved in the election.
As detailed in the 7-page document, the CIA’s operations lasted for almost a year. The bulk of the intelligence agency’s spying was carried out from Nov. 21 2011 to Sept. 29, 2012. This then carried on following the election in 2012 and the first couple of weeks of the new government.
WikiLeaks noted that these classified tasking orders involved the use of human and electronic spies, which were respectively referred to by the CIA as HUMINIT and SIGINT. Through these operatives, the intelligence agency targeted various individuals and parties for surveillance purposes.
These included the French Socialist Party, the Union for a Popular Movement, the National Front, Francois Hollande, Nicolas Sarkozy, Martine Aubry, Dominique Strauss-Khan and Marine Le Pen.
During the time of the CIA’s spying operations, Sarkozy was the ruling leading of France. He was then replaced by Hollande following the election.
According to the documents, the CIA determined that Sarkozy’s re-election was not guaranteed. Because of this, the agency ordered its operatives to monitor how he interacted with the other presidential candidates during their private deliberations. Aside from this, the CIA also focused on the other candidates’ strategies for winning the election as well as their foreign policies.
In addition, the documents revealed that the CIA was very concerned with the candidates’ views on France’s economic growth, their thoughts on international trade agendas and the economic crisis that affected the European Union and Greece at that time.
Based on the documents from the CIA, it seems the agency mainly focused on monitoring the candidates and parties during the 2012 French president election. It is not yet clear if it had a direct involvement in influencing the outcome of the event.
