Snowden in Letter to Germany: 'Speaking the Truth Is Not a Crime'

Edward Snowden expressed his support for a German investigation into NSA surveillance in a letter delivered the German government on Friday.

Outraged by recent allegations that the NSA might have tapped Chancellor Angela Merkel's phone, German lawmakers are considering a closer examination of the NSA's practices andhave proposed inviting Snowden to testify.

In the letter, Snowden, who has been charged with espionage, declines a potential invitation, but he says he "looks forward" to cooperating with Germany once the "situation is resolved" with the U.S. government.

"Speaking the truth is not a crime. I am confident that with the support of the international community, the government of the United States will abandon this harmful behavior."

Snowden, who has reportedly taken a job in Russia, gave the letter to Hans-Christian Stroebele, a green party lawmaker who showed it to the media in a press conference on Friday.

Read the letter in full below: