Between Five Eyes

50 years of Intelligence sharing

By Anthony R Wells

Published by Big Sky Publishing
RRP $29.99 in paperback  |  ISBN: 9781922387806

Just recently we have heard news reports referencing the ‘Five Eyes’ and some disharmony in that select group. It’s not a term that would be familiar to the general public I would think.

As it turns out, Anthony Wells is the only living person to have worked for both British intelligence as a British citizen and US intelligence as a US citizen, which gives him a unique perspective, coupled with his early training which included time spent with the most distinguished exponents of deception and other clandestine operations from the World War Two period.

This book constitutes 50 years working for the UK-US intelligence community, witnessing the inner workings at the highest security levels, and, of course, the fallout from the Cambridge spy drama.

As you read through this book, you realise the breadth of activities the author participated in and the insights he gained in high level conversations.

Here I am thinking of the reasons for the failure of Operation Market Garden (WWII) which he concludes offers an important lesson: if there is no organizational and cultural willingness to make changes and implement lessons learned, the same mistakes can be made time and again in new and often different operational settings.

He concludes that what has occurred within the Five Eyes community is quite remarkable, held together by its shared values, despite differences on various issues over the years.

For anyone with even a passing interest in how the intelligence community operates, this book is a ‘must read’.

His breadth of experience and knowledge of the intelligence community is extensive and insightful.

Fascinating reading.