U.S.-Germany relations hit new low amid NSA spying scandal, official says

MAINZ, Germany -- The United States' relationship with its powerful ally Germany has hit a new low, a leading German official said ahead of President Obama's much-anticipated speech on the government's controversial surveillance methods.

"The current situation in transatlantic relations is worse than it was at the low-point in 2003 during the Iraq War," Philipp Missfelder, coordinator for transatlantic relations in Germany's foreign office, told NBC News.

In 2003, former German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder spoke out strongly against the U.S.-led invasion in Iraq and refused German military support, causing severe political friction between the two countries.

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