Washington, July 8 (RHC)-- The U.S. Central Intelligence Agency has obtained confidential information from a German intelligence official, according to a new report. Two U.S. officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, told the Reuters news agency that the CIA was involved in a spying operation against Germany that led to the recruitment of the official, an employee of the German intelligence agency (BND).

Last week, German police arrested a 31-year-old man suspected of spying for the United States. German prosecutors say the double agent allegedly sold 218 documents to the U.S. between 2012 and 2014. The man has confessed to passing to a U.S. contact details about a German parliamentary committee's investigation of U.S. eavesdropping.

Speaking at a news conference in China on Monday, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said that if reports that the intelligence employee spied for the U.S. are proven true, it would be a “clear contradiction” of trust between the two countries.

Last year, leaks disclosed by former U.S. surveillance whistleblower Edward Snowden revealed that Washington had been spying on Merkel. The report strained ties between Washington and its close European ally. The White House then agreed to stop targeting Merkel, but rejected Berlin's request for a no-spy agreement between the two countries.

Global outrage over U.S. government surveillance spiked after a confidential memo obtained from Snowden revealed that the NSA had illegally eavesdropped on the phone conversations of dozens of world leaders, including Merkel.