Thread by @uOttawaCIPS

We have Wesley Wark’s thread here coming up next. #5EyesCIPS

The intelligence alliance now known as the FVEY was born in the early days of the Cold War and was the product of a perceived existential threat posed by the Soviet Union. #5EyesCIPS

Canada was instrumental in the development of the FVEY. Canadian officials, operating in secret, strived after WWII to create an independent capacity for intelligence & worked hard to gain a place alongside both the British & US intelligence systems. #5EyesCIPS

They successfully created a Canada-US signals intelligence pact (CANUSA – 1949) which was the crucial first step in broadening an initial Anglo-American alliance (BRUSA - 1946) – eventually the FVEY when Australia & New Zealand joined in the 1950s #5EyesCIPS

Canadian intelligence during the Cold War was shaped to meet the needs of the FVEY. Canada’s early role was to develop a capability in the field of Arctic intelligence gathering, focussing on northern Russian military and industrial activities. #5EyesCIPS

Over decades the alliance expanded into many other areas of intelligence and national security. The expansiveness and adaptability of the Five Eyes system allowed it to survive the end of the Cold War. #5EyesCIPS

The Five Eyes alliance has always been a unique undertaking in global affairs. Sharing secrets does not come naturally to sovereign states, even close allies, and it had no counterpart among other blocs. #5EyesCIPS

The key question at hand is: Can the #FVEY keep delivering major security and intelligence benefits to its members? The answer appears to be yes, with change. #5EyesCIPS

One major threat to the Five Eyes has been resolved. A hard-hitting trade war by the US targeting the Chinese corporate giant, Huawei, & its potential role in the global development of 5G telecommunications systems. #5EyesCIPS

This featured frequent threats of reprisals by the US against any FVEY member that did not follow its Huawei ban, but has essentially been solved by the imposition of a US export ban on semi-conductors. #5EyesCIPS

Only Canada has not, at the time of writing, announced a policy on Huawei and 5G, but it has run out of manoeuvre room and will inevitably throw in with its Five Eyes counterparts, restoring harmony to the intelligence alliance. #5EyesCIPS

Whatever doubts the #FVEY might have about the Trump Admin appear to have been cast aside in favour of increased use of the FVEY as a forum to tackle the security issues not just at the level of intelligence officials but increasingly in senior political gatherings #5EyesCIPS

This has resulted in a huge increase in meetings and topics. As such, he Five Eyes partnership appears to have morphed from a strictly intelligence alliance into a grand political coalition. Five Eyes has become a G5. #5EyesCIPS

For Canada this development brings some potential advantages. It may heighten the relevance of intelligence to Canadian policy making and may provide a broader forum for working out global policy initiatives with the US. #5EyesCIPS

It also brings significant challenges. Operating within a five-country diplomatic alliance without real counterweights to US power, will always pose difficulties for Canadian independent policy-making. #5EyesCIPS

Turning the FVEY into a policy alliance is also a challenge for maintaining the independence of intelligence advice & sharing. The FVEY has evolved so remarkably in a short time, so our strategic thinking about its relative benefits & drawbacks must evolve as well. #5EyesCIPS