Spy agencies keep an eye on changing political climate

Australia’s spy agencies are giving top priority to the United Nations climate change conference in Copenhagen to give Prime Minister Kevin Rudd a critical negotiating advantage.

Intelligence and diplomatic sources have told The Canberra Times that Australia’s spy agencies, especially the top-secret Defence Signals Directorate, collected and channelled intelligence on the negotiating positions of other countries before the global climate change talks.

Particular priority was given to Australia’s neighbours in Asia and the South Pacific.

”Copenhagen’s been one of the Government’s top international priorities, and that’s reflected in our intelligence collection,” one intelligence official said.

”Preparations for a big multilateral conference inevitably generate an enormous flow of communications, so the big challenge is to sort the wheat from the chaff.”

Sources said the spy agencies’ focus on the climate conference was determined by the Federal Government’s National Intelligence Collection Committee, which is chaired by national security adviser Duncan Lewis.

Officials acknowledged that diplomatic reporting and public sources were the primary sources of information before the conference, but said secret intelligence, especially signals intelligence, provided ”insights into what foreign governments are really thinking, gives advance warning of initiatives and helps guard against surprises”.

Canberra Times