Intelligence For The Canadian Army In The 21st Century

While the Canadian Army has almost a century of intelligence experience, the truism that "how we define what we think we are doing when we are doing intelligence shapes how we do intelligence" is affecting the type of intelligence available to the Canadian Army today. To orient itself for the 21st Century, Army Intelligence needs to be re-oriented away from this information management construct and towards a knowledge management one, emphasizing integration within a Joint, Interagency, Multinational and Public (JIMP) framework to operate at both the operational and tactical levels, supported by the basic, current and estimative intelligence required to support not only force employment, but also force generation and theatre preparation.

Intelligence is a key element of operations, enabling commanders to successfully plan and conduct operations. It enables them to win decisive battles and it helps them to identify and attack high value targets. Intelligence is an important part of every military decision. Military intelligence is the knowledge of a possible or actual enemy or area of operation. It encompasses combat intelligence, strategic intelligence, and counterintelligence, and is essential to the preparation and execution of military policies, plans, and operations. The objective of military intelligence is to minimize the uncertainties of the affects of enemy, weather and terrain on operations. The decisive factor in warfare has often been the utilization of good intelligence. A glimpse of how this has been done in the Canadian Forces is contained in this reference book on the Intelligence Branch history.

Scarlet to Green details the ‘boom and bust’ cycles of the Canadian Army’s intelligence organization from its inception in 1903 to 1963, the eve of the Integration of the Canadian Armed Forces. The book analyzes the role of intelligence in Canadian Army operations in World Wars I and II, and the Korean War, as well as its activities in Canada. The influence of intelligence on operational decision-making, the development of new intelligence collection techniques, and the challenges of countering enemy espionage and subversion are some of the enduring aspects of military intelligence explored. Elliot draws particular attention to the imperatives for having a highly capable and professional military intelligence organization and staff, and shows the challenges when the situation is otherwise, in both peace and war. With a new Foreword and Afterword by Dr. David A. Charters (Professor of Military History (retd) and Senior Fellow at The Gregg Centre for the Study of War and Society, University of New Brunswick), this second edition commemorates the 35th Anniversary of the Canadian Intelligence Branch, the 75th Anniversary of the formation of the Army’s Canadian Intelligence Corps, and the latter’s formal re-instatement in December 2016.

Determining people’s true motives and character is a process that begins in early childhood and never ceases. The process of converting information into intelligence is no different. Myths and assumptions have to be continuously challenged in order to avoid misconceptions, separate fact from fiction, and develop the best course of action. Perception and reality are rarely aligned. It should come as no surprise, therefore, to learn that some of the people and the underlying methodology employed within the military intelligence establishment may not be who or what they seem. This illuminating insider’s look at the life of an intelligence operative and at military life in general, chronicles a successful career in an era that was simultaneously characterized by short-sighted and ineffective policies, and by a succession of high-profile incidents that reflected a corruption of fundamental military standards and values. Military Intelligence Operator is a thought-provoking and insightful commentary that has universal themes. At its heart, is an exploration of how our experiences continually shape and inform our worldview, and why those lessons remain our most valuable resource in an increasingly complex, fragmented, and volatile world.

The most comprehensive history of Canadian military intelligence and its influence on key military operations Canadian intelligence has become increasingly central to the operations of the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF). Canadian Military Intelligence: Operations and Evolution from the October Crisis to the War in Afghanistan is the first comprehensive history that examines the impact of tactical, operational, and strategic intelligence on the Canadian military. Drawing upon a wide range of original documents and interviews with participants in specific operations, author David A. Charters provides an inside perspective on the development of military intelligence since the Second World War. He shows how intelligence influenced key military operations, from domestic internal security to peacekeeping efforts to high-intensity air campaigns—including the October Crisis of 1970, the Oka Crisis, the Gulf War, peacekeeping and enforcement operations in the Balkans, and the war in Afghanistan. He describes how decades of experience, innovation, and increasingly close cooperation with its Five Eyes and NATO allies allowed Canada’s military intelligence to punch above its weight. Its tactical effectiveness and ability to overcome challenges reshaped the outlook of military commanders, and intelligence emerged from the margins to become a central feature of military and defense operations. Canadian Military Intelligence offers lessons from the past and critical implications for future intelligence support with the creation of the Canadian Forces Intelligence Command. This book will be essential to both intelligence history and military history readers and collections.