Canada’s most important security and intelligence alliance should be able to weather the current political storm engulfing Washington, according to journalist and filmmaker Richard Kerbaj.
Kerbaj, the author of The Secret History of the Five Eyes, told The West Block’s Mercedes Stephenson the long-standing spy partnership has survived political disagreements between its member countries in the past.
“The Five Eyes [has] been around for a long time now. You know, six decades, seven decades, eight decades, depends on how far back you trace its roots,” Kerbaj said in an interview.
“But it’s survived every single administration and government that it served. And I like to think that regardless what it’s hit by, it will continue to do so.”
The Five Eyes intelligence alliance comprises Canada, the United States, the U.K., Australia and New Zealand. It traces its origins back to the Second World War and co-operation between intelligence agencies in Britain and America.
The alliance shares sensitive intelligence between member states and conducts joint spy operations both on the ground and electronically through signals collection and analysis over the internet and telecommunications systems.
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In the alliance, Canada is a “net importer” of intelligence – meaning it receives more intelligence from the other four countries than it contributes.
U.S. President Donald Trump has often criticized allied countries, including Canada, for benefiting from America’s military power while failing to contribute NATO’s spending target of two per cent of the member countries’ GDP. Recently, Trump has mused the target should be raised to five per cent of GDP.
Canada currently spends 1.37 per cent, with a plan to achieve two per cent by 2032.
Trump has not applied the same criticism to allied countries’ espionage agencies, but any disruption to American intelligence sharing with Canada could have significant national security consequences.
Kerbaj noted that the U.S. currently spends roughly $100 billion annually on its intelligence agencies, which he said is about “10 times greater than all the other four eyes combined.” But he added that overall spending is not the only metric to judge a country’s contribution to the alliance.
“As much as money can buy you satellites and submarines and surveillance, it doesn’t protect. It doesn’t guarantee security. What guarantees you security is access and access to great information, great judgment, great analysis,” Kerbaj said.
“And that really does come from individuals either in the field or analysts.… Canada has contributed greatly in that area, not just because of its geography and its proximity and its capabilities, reach in the Arctic and have a good ear into eastern Russia or a capability across Latin America, but also because of its judgment and we’ve seen those crucial judgments and the intelligence judgments play out.”
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