Intelligence and contemporary conflict

In an increasingly dangerous world, the role of secret intelligence has never been more prominent or critical. The world face alarming contemporary conflicts while others threaten to develop. Espionage and clandestine activities, whether in the form of subversion, disinformation or covert political action, are central to how these real-world dramas play out. And it has never been more important to understand the value of intelligence and secret services in the fields of diplomacy, statecraft, and war.



This collection of essays brings together intelligence scholars and officials from the US, Great Britain, Canada and Sweden to assess how information, both classified and public, has impacted conflicts from the analogue past to the digital present. It offers insight on how intelligence services today operate to support or undermine international security and tries to determine what is good practice for political leaders and decision-makers when they apply the lessons of history to understand the world today.