The CIA Now

In modern times, the CIA supposedly doesn't operate directly against a singular country. Mostly, the CIA is involved in terrorist problems. With everything going on in the Middle East, America and its military needs as much information they can get. Anything from highly positioned terrorist leaders or nuclear threats are a priority. In the situations of nuclear threats, the CIA has helped track down many leads on possible nukes in the Middle East that may be deployed against the United States or it's assets. As for terrorist leaders, the CIA has had a huge role. After several years of searching and gathering, the CIA was able to pinpoint the position of Osama Bin Ladin. He was found and killed on May 2, 2011. This was a huge step in the war on terror, and it was supplied by the Central Intelligence Agency. The CIA is currently on watch all over the globe and hopefully will continue to help keep America and it's allies safe for many years to come.

The CIA in Vietnam and the Cold War

After the OSS had developed into the CIA, the United States became involved with the war in Vietnam, eventually committing fully to the cause. In the Vietnam War, there was heavy emphasis on clandestine operations for many reasons. The enemy of the U.S., the Viet Cong, used hit and run tactics throughout the war, and secretly gained help from the Soviets. To help combat the situation, the CIA became involved. Agents acted as secret advisors, instructors, and even became involved more directly through assassinations and intelligence gathering. The Vietnam War helped move the U.S. and the Soviet Union into the Cold War. Here, there were no "battles" but nuclear warfare was a huge threat. Behind the scenes, both the KGB and the CIA worked hard to gain information on the other. Anything from missile defense to enemy insurgents, such as the many Soviet agents implanted in the United States at the time. It was spy vs spy with the highest of stakes. Espionage here continued until around the time of the Cuban Missile Crisis, in which the CIA was also heavily involved in. The Agency prepped foreigners for the failed invasion of Cuba and also attempted to overthrow and assassinate Fidel Castro. This was followed by an end to most hostilities, and the CIA and KGB essentially stopped advances and peace was restored.

Intelligence Agencies Around the Globe

The CIA isn't the only national intelligence agency to operate on a large scale. Some people even argue that there are others that outperform America's own intelligence agency. The CIA also operates with allied agencies to gather necessary intelligence and deal with issues pertaining to national defense or foreign relations. For example, the British MI5 and MI6, made especially famous by media like the James Bond movies, have been quite efficient as well gathering intelligence for the Great Britian and its allies. Russia has the particularly revered KGB, and the Isrealis have the Mossad. Each agency has highly trained and dangerous operatives. Most are friendly towards the CIA, but in times of high tension and war, they may not be. In cases such as the Cold War, two agencies could be working to find the other's secrets and exploit weaknesses, much as the CIA and the KGB did. Time breeds conflict, and in these conflicts, information is key. This being so, each country has made efforts to obtin this intelligence. The United States has the CIA to cover, and for many years they have held their own.

Office of Strategic Services

As World War II hit America, there was a need to coordinate intelligence efforts. Until 1941, all intelligence had basically been handled within branches. This led to  uncoordinated operations that were less effective than they could have been with joint intelligence. The need for joint intelligence bred the OSS, or Office of Strategic Services, from the previous attempt at a joint service, the COI. The OSS was intended to pool all information from every branch and aid in overall cooperation. However, many high positioned officers were opposed to the OSS and worked to deny them the most vital of information sources in the military: intercepted enemy communications. However, this was overcome and a world wide clandestine operations group was built, working in every theatre of World War II. They worked closesly with British intelligence and made a high reputation. The OSS lasted into the Vietnam War, but in just the four years they were involved in World War II, the OSS spent the equivalent to about 1.1 Billion dollars in modern times. The OSS was expensive, but their impact on World War II was well worth it. In addition, the OSS also laid the path for future agencies such as the CIA.

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Clandestine Operations Throughout History

The Central Intelligence Agency is not the first organized group to carry out espionage. Certainly, it won't be the last. Many ancient civilizations, especially in the Middle East, had networks of spies to maintain the government and oust any potential threats. However, clandestine operations were also used on the offensive. The most noteable instance in ancient times was during the Trojan War. Here, in the seige on Troy, the Greeks left a building sized wooden horse and left with most of the army. The Trojans believed that they had won and took in the horse not knowing that inside were waiting many Greek soldiers waiting for nightfall to overtake the Trojans from the inside out. In Elizabethan times, Sir Francis Welsingham became the father of intelligence in England. Such operations evolved to the Revolutionary War and early America with such spies as Benedict Arnold. Espionage and clandestine operations have been carried out throughout history, changing only with technology. It wasn't until World War II that espionage became a prime concern. This era led to the birth of a string of national agencies, including the father to the CIA.

Central Intelligence Agency Overview

The Central Intelligence Agency, or CIA is the equivalent to the eyes, ears, and sometimes even the hands of the U.S. Government and military. Operating around the globe, the CIA is tasked with gathering vital information to analyze and store for the military and government. Sometimes, they also are tasked with dealing with the situation pertaining to the information. However, the CIA isn't just a bunch of high tech spy game agents. They do much  more than just roam the globe assassinating people. There are several branches that operate in different settings, as well as the people that analyze and work with the gathered data. All of this dates back to the beginning of America with spies and espionage, slowly working up to the OSS during World War II. This eventually evolved into the CIA that is known, or fairly unknown, today, given the clandestine nature of the CIA's business. This blog will explore this history down to the first spies and occurances of espionage that humanity has seen. The Agency is dangerous and mysterious, but every organization has its roots.