US accused of spying on Security Council

Washington alleged to have ordered bugging of delegates' telephones and emails

The United States was accused last night of launching an aggressive telephone and email bugging operation on UN Security Council members whose votes will be critical to international support for a US-led war on Iraq.

The Observer newspaper claimed to have obtained a memorandum from a top official at the US's National Security Agency to its senior agents ordering survelliance to be stepped up.

Unless the document proves an elaborate hoax, its revelation will prove severely embarrassing on what will be a critical week at the UN.

The alleged order was given on 31 January, four days after the first interim report on Iraq by the UN weapons inspector, Hans Blix, and as pressure mounted from the US for a deadline to be set for war. But it came three weeks before a second resolution on Iraq was tabled by Britain, backed by the US and Spain.

The memo ordered agency staff to step up their spying, "particularly directed at ... UN Security Council members (minus US and GBR of course) to provide up-to-the minute intelligence for Bush officials on the voting intentions of UN members regarding the issue of Iraq".

To get their second resolution passed, the US and Britain require nine votes on the 15-member Security Council, and the absence of a veto from key countries. The newspaper claimed last night that the memorandum made clear that the targets of the heightened spying were the council "waverers" – Angola, Cameroon, Chile, Mexico, Guinea and Pakistan – and the group pushing for more time for inspections, led by France, China and Russia. The US and Britain have been involved in frenzied diplomatic activity with these nations.

The memo was alleged to have been sent by Frank Koza, chief of staff in the "regional targets" section of the National Security Agency. In the memo he says the information would be used for the US's "quick response capability", "against" the delegations.

The memo was also said to have been circulated to a "friendly foreign intelligence agency asking for its input". Koza allegedly addressed it, writing: "We'd appreciate your support in getting the word to your analysts who might have more indirect access to valuable information from accesses in your product lines [intelligence sources]."

The surveillance operation had apparently been ordered by President George Bush's National Security Adviser, Condoleezza Rice. The newspaper reports that the operation involved surveillance of both the home and office telephones and computers of the UN Security Council delegates.