CIA spies travel to European countries - including Greece - with absolutely no obstacles, according to secret documents obtained by the Wikileaks and exclusively present THE NEWS. In the travel instructions distributed by the American secret services to their agents, there is a special reference to our country and the "Eleftherios Venizelos" airport. They had access to these files except by TA NEA, Germany's Sueddeutsche Zeitung and Publico.es in Spain.
Specifically, in one of the two documents leaked to Wiki|eaks include an analysis of security systems at Schengen borders and entry gates. In essence, these are CIA instructions intended for spies traveling to Europe so that they know what awaits them in the controls they will have to pass when entering European countries.
«Biometric systems at the borders of the Schengen area in the European Union pose little threat to its disclosure ID cardof American business travelers, because their primary goal is irregular immigration and criminal activities, not counterintelligence. American travelers typically do not match the characteristics of suspicious targets. Business travelers with U.S. travel documents are not required to provide biometric data when crossing the external borders of the Schengen area," the classified CIA document, which is also classified as "NOFORN," says non-US citizens.
The analysis shows that most of the systems that control entry into the European arena pose a "minimal" risk to CIA agents: among them are the two Schengen Information Systems SIS and SIS II, the SIRENS, version Visa for Schengen countries, the EURODAC (the European fingerprint database mainly used for irregular immigration and asylum seekers) as well as the EES (Advanced Traffic Control Entry Control System, which is not yet in operation). A limited risk also poses the activity of its border guards Frontex.
A small - and not a minimal - risk to reveal the identity of the spies, according to the document, Visa Information System (VIS) which started operating in 2011. The VIS system facilitates the respchange of Visa data between Schengen countries and is designed to prevent a practice known as “Visa shopping”, in which an applicant, who has been refused a visa by one Member State, submits applications to other Member States in order for one of them to be granted accepted. "It is unclear whether holders of official and diplomatic passports traveling to France, Greece or Spain should provide biometric data for the acquisition of Visa. The threat of revealing the identity of travelers who do not carry US travel documents and need to acquire Visa for entry into the Schengen zone will grow as the VIS system spreads in more countries, "he said, hitting the bell for those spies using other passports except for the US to enter the European area.
What is reported about "El. Venizelos »
The second classified document obtained by Wiki|eaks, also restricted to non-US citizens, is titled "Surviving the Secondary" and includes information for airports and detailed checks procedures. Reports of secret agents from their experiences at airports have also been used as a source of information. "Secondary checks they can put pressure on business travelers for their identity, "he says. A table included in the confidential document also mentions Athens International Airport, in the context of a special chapter that analyzes how the country where the traveler is from and previous destinationsaffect auditors' decisions for detailed audits. "The past of travel that indicates a possible link with drug trafficking, Islamic extremism or illegal immigration can lead to a secondary one," he says. Σthe case of "Eleftherios Venizelos" points out that passengers from countries like Egypt, Iraq and Iran raise concerns about terrorism, while from Afghanistan, Pakistan, India and the Netherlands for drug trafficking.
The European Commission manual
To issue instructions to "business travelers" the CIA's people have supplied the manual that the Commission gives to border guards so that controls in the EU are governed by the maximum possible uniformity. The analysis of the American secret services shows that even if they have passed a second more detailed check, the "travelers" are in serious danger of revealing their identity.only if there is additional information about them or a suspicious activity has been perceived. Among other things, apart from checking the date of entry, residence and authenticity of passports, the CIA documents state that European border guards are obliged, in accordance with the Commission's instructions, during the second checks, to examine travel documents for falsification or forgery, using various technical aids and making comparisons with samples.
They are also being asked to cross the points of departure, the destination and the purpose of the visit, as well as to confirm that travelers have the necessary sums of money to enable them to live during their stay in Schengen.
