Putin: NSA surveillance needed to fight terrorism

Russian President Vladimir Putin said that National Security Agency surveillance is necessary to fight terrorism, but added that the US government must "limit the appetite" of the agency with a clear set of ground rules.

Putin's comment was surprising support for President Barack Obama's Administration, which has faced massive criticism over the sweeping US electronic espionage program. Putin, a 16-year KGB veteran and the former chief of Russia's main espionage agency, said that while the NSA program "isn't a cause for joy, it's not a cause for repentance either" because it is needed to fight terrorism. Putin added that the efficiency of the effort -- and its damage to privacy -- is limited by the sheer inability to process such a huge amount of data.