BACK TO THE FUTURE
BY MARCO MUNIER
T
his paper does not aim to
settle the debate definitively,
but rather to review the sa-
lient points of the debate
between advocates and op-
ponents of the creation of a foreign hu-
man intelligence service (FHIS) in Can-
ada, considering the current international
context and recent developments in Ca-
nadian intelligence. While recognizing
the existing transformations in Canadian
intelligence, this paper argues that what-
ever Canada's intelligence needs may be,
it is unlikely that it will move towards the
creation of a foreign human intelligence
service in the short to medium term, and
that Canada's intelligence needs can be
met without the creation of a foreign hu-
man intelligence service.
Canada and Foreign Human
Intelligence
Intelligence activities are relatively un-
publicized in Canada and rarely part of
the political debate, unlike our American
28 AUGUST/SEPTEMBER 2022 www.vanguardcanada.com
Back to the Future?
THE CREATION OF A FOREIGN HUMAN INTELLIGENCE SERVICE IN CANADA
THE QUESTION OF WHETHER CANADA SHOULD HAVE A
FOREIGN HUMAN INTELLIGENCE SERVICE, ALONG THE
LINES OF THE AMERICAN CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY
(CIA) OR THE BRITISH SECRET INTELLIGENCE SERVICE
(MI6), DATES BACK AT LEAST TO THE 1990S, AND EVEN TO
THE END OF THE SECOND WORLD WAR WITH CANADA'S
DECISION NOT TO PURSUE ESPIONAGE ACTIVITIES
ABROAD. HOWEVER, THE ISSUE REGULARLY RESURFACES
IN ACADEMIC, POLITICAL AND MEDIA CIRCLES.
