Germany tight-lipped on CIA secret deal report

BERLIN, Oct 26 (Reuters) The German Foreign Ministry today said it had no comment on a report the CIA made Germany a secret offer in return for support on deflecting criticism from its policy of flying terrorism suspects to secret jails.

British newspaper the Guardian said today the CIA offered Germany access to one of its citizens, an al Qaeda suspect who was being held in Morocco.

Citing a secret intelligence report, the paper said that in return for this, the CIA demanded Berlin should head off EU pressure on human rights abuses in Morocco linked to the detention of suspects transported in so-called ''renditions''.

A spokesman said the German Foreign Ministry had no comment on the story, making a reference only to parliament's mediation committee, a body presently investigating the role played by the CIA in flying terrorism suspects across Europe.

According to the Guardian, Germany was granted access to the suspect, who was not named in the report. It said the man was arrested in Morocco in 2002 on suspicion of helping to organise the September 11, 2001 attacks on the United States.

Berlin's relations with US security forces since the September 11 attacks have been the subject of intense media scrutiny.

Critics allege the administration of previous Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder, to which current Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier belonged, aided the United States in kidnapping and flying terrorism suspects to third countries for questioning.

Earlier this year, a parliamentary inquiry began into allegations that German spies had helped the US invasion of Iraq, despite Schroeder's vocal criticism of the intervention.

Reuters PB DB2239