• Greece is a major defense spender with, occasionally, some wild ideas about diversifying its weapons sources. That the higher military brass is bugged, is a running joke among the DoD staff.

• The Olympics: the wiretaps started a few months before the Games.

• Middle East and "Terrorism": Large Middle Eastern transit population (businessmen, immigrants). Including Kurdish PKK sympathizers and Palestinians. And a respectably sized anarchist and far left movement. Also: traditionally good relations with the Arab and Middle Eastern world in general (with ~15% of the world's tanker fleet under Greek ownership, this  goodwill isn't about to change).

- Because they can.

The road of excess leads to the palace of wisdom - William Blake

It enables the Greek minister to get up in parliament and says "The Greek Govt does not bug its citizens". No, it asks another govt to do it for them.

In UK we have Menwith Hill. We all know what it's for, we shrug our shoulders and get on with it. Yes, we're being spied on by our own Govt. We live with it cos we have no choice. After all, do you seriously think they'd stop if we asked them nicely ?

keep to the Fen Causeway