EU, U.S. Reach Deal on Passenger Data

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Source: Associated Press

- European negotiators reached a provisional deal with the United States on Wednesday, ending a year of wrangling over how to share information about trans-Atlantic air passengers that Washington says is needed to fight terrorism.

The tentative agreement will be put to envoys from all 27 European Union nations Friday for approval, said the diplomats, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the deal has not been finalized.

Differences over how to balance security needs with concerns over passengers' privacy had deadlocked negotiations since a 2004 deal on data sharing was voided by an EU court last year for technical reasons.

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German Interior Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble told a European Parliament committee Tuesday that under the deal being negotiated the number of data shared would drop to "around 20," while the period they can be held by the U.S. would be extended. He did not say what types of data would be withheld or how long it would be kept.

Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070627/ap_on_re_eu/passenger_data_2