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Books > Social sciences > Politics & government > International relations > Espionage & secret services
The disintegration of the Soviet Union, the fall of the Berlin Wall, attempts to solve military confrontation by peaceful means and the Middle East peace process have all given rise to the discussion about the role of intelligence in times of peace.
'Fascinating analysis' Nigel West; 'Grippingly told, authoritative' Mail on Sunday; 'Meticulously researched...a remarkably good read' John Brennan, former CIA Director; 'Excellent...a detailed, highly professional account' Sir John Scarlett, former MI6 Chief The Special Relationship between America and Britain is feted by politicians on both sides of the Atlantic when it suits their purpose and just as frequently dismissed as a myth, not least by the media, which announces its supposed death on a regular basis. Yet the simple truth is that the two countries are bound together more closely than either is to any other ally. In The Real Special Relationship, Michael Smith reveals how it all began, when a top-secret visit by four American codebreakers to Bletchley Park in February 1941 - ten months before the US entered the Second World War - marked the start of a close collaboration between the two nations that endures to this day. Once the war was over, and the Cold War began, both sides recognised that the way they had worked together to decode German and Japanese ciphers could now be used to counter the Soviet threat. Despite occasional political conflict and public disputes between the two nations, such as during the Suez crisis, behind the scenes intelligence sharing continued uninterrupted, right up to the recent Russian invasion of Ukraine. Smith, the bestselling author of Station X and having himself served in British military intelligence, brings together a fascinating range of characters, from Winston Churchill and Ian Fleming to Kim Philby and Edward Snowden, who have helped shape the security of our two nations. Supported by in-depth interviews and an excellent range of personal contacts, he takes the reader into the mysterious workings of MI6, the CIA and all those who work to keep us safe.
As Asia increases in economic and geopolitical significance, it is necessary to better understand the region's intelligence cultures. The Handbook of Asian Intelligence Cultures explores the historical and contemporary influences that have shaped Asian intelligence cultures as well as the impact intelligence service have had on domestic and foreign affairs. In examining thirty Asian countries, it considers the roles, practices, norms and oversight of Asia's intelligence services, including the ends to which intelligence tools are applied. The book argues that there is no archetype of Asian intelligence culture due to the diversity of history, government type and society found in Asia. Rather, it demonstrates how Asian nations' histories, cultures and governments play vital roles in intelligence cultures. This book is a valuable study for scholars of intelligence and security services in Asia, shedding light on understudied countries and identifying opportunities for future scholarship.
A GRIPPING NEW HISTORY OF US PRESIDENTS AND CIA SECRETS Every day, the President of the United States receives a bespoke, top-secret briefing document from the Central Intelligence Agency.Truman started them, Kennedy came to rely on them and Trump hardly read them. Current Intelligence charts almost a century of history and politics, revealing for the first time the day-to-day intelligence that lands on the Oval Office desk in the form of the President's Daily Brief. Using recently declassified documents, it uncovers what successive American presidents knew and when, and what they did in response. The nuclear arms race, the Vietnam War and 9/11 might never have happened if presidents had read their Daily Briefs differently. By focusing on key moments, from the Cuban Missile Crisis and covert operations around the world, right up to the US withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021, Current Intelligence reveals how intelligence has profoundly shaped our past and present.
Little attention has been paid to the murky, ultra-business of gathering intelligence among and forming estimates about friendly powers, and friendly or allied military forces. How rarely have scholars troubled to discover when states entered into coalitions or alliances mainly and explicitly because their intelligence evaluation of the potential partner concluded that making the alliance was, from the originator's national security interest, the best game in town. The twentieth century has been chosen to enhance the coherence of and connections between, the subject matter of this under-explored part of intelligence studies.
Little attention has been paid to the murky, ultra-business of gathering intelligence among and forming estimates about friendly powers, and friendly or allied military forces. How rarely have scholars troubled to discover when states entered into coalitions or alliances mainly and explicitly because their intelligence evaluation of the potential partner concluded that making the alliance was, from the originator's national security interest, the best game in town. The twentieth century has been chosen to enhance the coherence of and connections between, the subject matter of this under-explored part of intelligence studies.
Intelligence agencies are reflections of the societies they serve. No surprise, then, that modern spies and the agencies they work for are fixated on the internet and electronic communications. These same officials also struggle with notions of privacy, appropriateness, national boundaries and the problem of disinformation. They are citizens of both somewhere and nowhere, serving a national public yet confronting spies who operate across borders. These adversaries are utilising new technologies that offer a transnational anonymity. Meanwhile, ordinary people are keen to be protected from threats, but equally keen - basing their understanding of intelligence on news and popular culture - to avoid over-reach by authorities believed to have near-God-like powers. This is the new operating environment for spies: a heady mix of rapid technological development, identity politics, plausible deniability, uncertainty and distrust of authority. Hacker, Influencer, Faker, Spy explores both the challenges spies face from these digital horizons, and the challenges citizens face in understanding what spies do and how it impacts on them. Rob Dover makes a radical case for overhauling intelligence to capitalise on open-source information: shrinking the secret state, whilst still supporting the functioning of modern governments in the post-COVID age.
Established in the 1940s, the Five Eyes intelligence network consists of Australia, Britain, Canada, New Zealand, and the United States. The alliance was integral to shaping domestic and international security decisions during the Cold War, yet much of the intelligence history of these countries remains unknown. In The Bridge in the Parks, intelligence scholars from across the Five Eyes come together to present case studies detailing the varied successes and struggles their countries experienced in the world of Cold War counter-intelligence. The case studies draw on newly declassified documents on a variety of topics, including civil liberties, agent handling, wiretapping, and international relations. Collectively, these studies highlight how Cold War intelligence history is more nuanced than it has often been portrayed - and much like in the world of intelligence, nothing is ever entirely as it seems.
The United States' national security depends on a secure, reliable and resilient cyberspace. The inclusion of digital systems into every aspect of US national security has been underway since World War II and has increased with the proliferation of Internet enabled devices. There is an increasing need to develop a robust deterrence framework within which the US and its allies can dissuade would be adversaries from engaging in various cyber activities. Yet despite a desire to deter adversaries, the problems associated with dissuasion remain complex, multifaceted, poorly understood and imprecisely specified. Challenges including, credibility, attribution, escalation and conflict management to name but a few remain ever present and challenge the US in its efforts to foster security in cyberspace. These challenges need to be addressed in a deliberate and multidisciplinary approach that combines political and technical realities to provide a robust set of policy options to decision makers. The Cyber Deterrence Problem brings together a multi-disciplinary team of scholars from multiple institutions with expertise in computer science, deterrence theory, cognitive psychology, intelligence studies, and conflict management to analyze and develop a robust assessment of the necessary requirements and attributes for achieving deterrence in cyberspace. Beyond simply addressing the base challenges associated with deterrence many of the chapters also propose strategies and tactics to enhance deterrence in cyberspace and emphasize conceptualizing how the US deters adversaries.
The security services have played a central--and often mysterious--role at key turning points in Russia during the tumultuous years following the Soviet collapse: from the Moscow apartment house bombings and theater siege, to the war in Chechnya and the Beslan school massacre. In this riveting investigation, two intrepid journalists penetrate the secret world of the FSB and illustrate how the security services have evolved into a ruthless, violently powerful force that is inextricably woven into modern Russia's fundamental makeup, and has become more shadowy than its predecessor, the Soviet KGB.
In this fascinating, exhaustively researched reexamination of the 'Pueblo Incident,' Robert Liston comes to a remarkable conclusion: the Pueblo was purposely surrendered in a secret mission planned by the National Security Agency. The operation was the subject of a total cover-up-from the White House, the Pentagon, Congress, and the American public. Liston states that: The Pueblo was controlled by NSA operatives planted aboard the ship without the knowledge of the Navy; and the Chinese and the Soviets were after information they were led to believe was on board the Pueblo-information that was vital to both for intelligence purposes But what was this deadly information? It was part of an NSA operation, in which a rigged U.S. code machine was secretly planted aboard the Pueblo to induce the North Koreans to capture and use the rigged code machine, thus permitting the U.S. to break the Soviet system of codes. The North Koreans used the machine to radio Vladivostok for instructions. The Soviet codes were broken almost immediately. Liston maintains the Pueblo surrender was the greatest intelligence coup of modern times, preventing a major U.S. defeat in the Tet Offensive in Vietnam, foiling Soviet plans to invade China in a potentially nuclear conflict, and leading directly to the rapprochement between China and the U.S. Because the Soviets knew their codes were broken, the KGB began a massive overhaul of their entire intelligence operation. To gain time for that, the Kremlin launched its policy of detente with the West. Liston masterfully organizes his material to expose the many inconsistencies in all previous accounts of the surrender, and carefully details the roles of the major players. Drawing on published accounts and interviews with crewmen and informants, Liston logically compiles the facts and details to reach a devastating conclusion. What emerges is not only an eye-opening revelation of the risks taken by the NSA in the power play of espionage, but a chilling portrait of an unimpeachable intelligence apparatus that threatens the very foundations of American democracy.
THE TIMES THRILLER OF THE MONTH CHOICE MAGAZINE HARDBACK OF THE MONTH 'A thoroughly gripping spy thriller... Captures the high stakes paranoia of the era brilliantly.' Adam Hamdy, author of Black 13 'Intelligent, involving and gripping.' Choice 'Considered and entertaining, I was drawn in from page one.' Charlotte Philby, author of Part of the Family Duty or honour. Which would you betray? It's 1966. London is swinging, and the Cold War is spiralling. Clear cut lines have faded to grey areas. Whispers of conspiracies are everywhere. Spies on both sides of the iron curtain are running in circles, chasing constant plots and counterplots. And MI5 agent Richard Knox is tired of all of it. But when Abey Bennett, his CIA comrade in arms, appears in London with a ghost from Knox's past and a terrifying warning that could change the balance of power in the Cold War for good, he has to fight to save the future.
This prize-winning book, first published in 1991, provides a detailed legal account of the development of the UK Official Secrets Acts 1911-1989. In particular, the Espionage section (s.1) of this criminal law is analysed carefully, illustrated by leading cases of UK spies prosecuted under this section, particularly during the 1980's - including MI5 officer Michael Bettaney and Geoffrey Prime who worked at GCHQ. The author also examines problems of evidence in espionage prosecutions, and the consent of the Attorney-General in cases under the Official Secrets Acts. This book remains the definitive treatise on the UK Official Secrets Acts, especially concerning the espionage provisions.
The Soviet military concept of operational art and the associated theories such as "war of annihilations," "deep battle," and "deep operations" have been observed by the West since World War II. The Soviet government hid their military-theoretical work behind a veil of secrecy. Here, the Soviet theories are revealed in the words of those who created them in peacetime and applied them in war.
This book traces the history of Australia's highly secret Intelligence Security Organisation. Established in the early days of the Cold War, like most intelligence organisations working under covert conditions, it exceeded the vague powers entrusted to it. It has been the subject of two Royal Commissions in Australia and in recent times several acts of Parliament have been passed in order to make it more accountable to Australia's government and its citizens.
Numerous allegations of abuse of power have been made against the domestic security intelligence agencies in the United Kingdom - police special branches and MI5. These include the improper surveillance of trade unionists and peace activists, campaigns of disinformation against elected politicians and, most serious of all, the summary shooting of people believed to be engaged in political violence. Although in recent years far-reaching inquiries have been conducted into similar agencies in other liberal democracies, and the end of the Cold War has brought dramatic change to security agencies in Eastern Europe, the UK agencies have remained aloof from anything more than marginal organisational change. Drawing on extensive foreign material and making use of the social science concepts of information, power and law, this book develops a framework for the comparative analysis of these agencies. This provides, first, a systematic discussion of what is known about the operations of security intelligence agencies in liberal democracies and, second, an agenda for research into the UK agencies, including: the ambiguous nature of their mandate regarding 'national security', 'subversion' and 'terrorism'; the ways in which the agencies penetrate society and what they do with the information they gather; internal organisational questions such as recruitment and culture; the extent to which the agencies are controlled by ministers; and how the agencies' activities might be overseen by outside political bodies such as parliamentary committees, and by citizens in general. Concluding that not enough is known about how these agencies operate in the UK, the book argues the need for a thorough inquiry toinvestigate the disturbing allegations that have been made, and to make proposals for a more democratic system of security intelligence.
Numerous allegations of abuse of power have been made against the domestic security intelligence agencies in the UK - police special branches and MI5. These include the improper surveillance of trades unionists and peace activists, campaigns of disinformation against elected politicians and the summary shooting of people believed to be engaged in political violence. Although far-reaching enquiries have been conducted into similar agencies in other liberal democracies, and the end of the Cold War has brought dramatic change to security agencies in Eastern Europe, the UK agencies have remained aloof from anything more than marginal organizational change.
This volume offers an account of some key activities of the Allied secret services and their German counterparts in Sweden during World War II. It also describes in some detail Swedish wartime legislation and Swedish organizations concerned with internal security and intelligence.
This collection of essays is an attempt to explore the history of spy fiction and spy films and investigate the significance of the ideas they contain. The volume offers insights into the development and symbolism of spy fiction. Collectively, the essays show how spy fiction and films have provided their own commentary on the history, politics and psychology of international relations. Spy fiction does not merely imitate espionage, it creates its own substitute for reality.
When A Don at War was published in 1966 it was hailed as the first book to be written from the point of view of the Intelligence staff officer in the field with critics remarking on Sir David Hunt's authoritative exposition of British as well as German strategies. Eight years later it was revealed that the British, through the Ultra' system, were able to decode even the most important German radio messages despite the fact they were sent in the supposedly unbreakable Enigma cipher'. Since 1974 the great secret has become common knowledge. As a result Sir David has specially written for this second edition a new foreword whose main purpose is to explain the use made of Ultra during four years campaigning in the Mediterranean.
Traditionally the military community held the intelligence profession in low esteem, spying was seen as dirty work and information was all to often ignored if it conflicted with a commander's own view. Handel examines the ways in which this situation has improved and argues that co-operation between the intelligence adviser and the military decision maker is vital. |
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