Wherever there are diplomats, spooks are not far away

Published on Friday 27 February 2004 00:00

"ANYONE who turns up to negotiate with the British government expects to get bugged," was the comment of a retired senior diplomat yesterday. "And we expect they will try to bug us."

In the world of international politics and diplomacy the role of the "intelligence support" - as spying is euphemistically termed - is rarely talked about in public. Not because it never happens, but because every one is doing it or would like to do it.

Governments, such as the British, French, Russians and the US, that have the capability to "read the mail" of their international rivals or opponents, really prize the advantages it gives them. "In the modern world a first-rate intelligence service is akin to having nuclear weapons - it gives governments real power and leverage," said one intelligence source. "The end of the Cold War has meant the assets that once targeted Communism are now being turned on trade, diplomatic and political rivals, such as the French, Germans or even the UN itself."

In the age of the US being the world’s only military superpower, smaller countries, such as Britain, or declining powers such as Russia, see intelligence as a way to counter-balance Washington or gain influence in the corridors of the White House.

For obvious reasons the tricks of the intelligence trade are rarely talked about in public and only emerge on rare occasions. Politicians in Belfast - of all political and religious persuasions - are well used to being on the receiving end of electronic surveillance. It is widely accepted that the offices used by all the parties during the Good Friday talks in Northern Ireland were bugged by British intelligence to provide Tony Blair with advance notice of their negotiating positions. Similar tactics were used during the Lancaster House negotiations in London that brokered the end of the Rhodesian conflict in 1979.

This interest in spying on diplomatic rivals is not restricted to Britain. The French have expelled US diplomats after they caught them trying to recruit spies inside Paris ministries. Wherever you find diplomats and negotiations, spies are not far away, say intelligence sources.

The highest density of spooks per city block can be found in cities which are home to major diplomatic centres. New York, which is home to the UN headquarters building, has long been "spook central", with every intelligence agency having a strong presence within its country’s delegation or nearby "safe houses". Second on the spy hit list is Brussels, which is home to both the EU and NATO headquarters.

Providing technical support for MI5 and MI6, GCHQ from its Cheltenham base is Britain’s "centre of excellence" when it comes to what is known as "technical collection" - the tapping of phone lines or eaves -dropping on conversations inside buildings. Not only do GCHQ technical experts conduct "collection", but they also break codes and translate foreign languages. In the wake of the claims from Claire Short and Katharine Gun, the senior management of GCHQ will no doubt be working overtime to try to mollify their US counter-parts that they are still trust-worthy partners. "If we can rescue something from the wreckage of this mess I will be amazed," was the view of one former intelligence operative.