A mantra of the U.S. Intelligence System is that `support to military operations' (SMO) is an essential mission. As is often the case, few within that system seem to have a very clear idea of SMO really means. This is one of the reasons that this book, "Peacekeeping Intelligence" is such a significant contribution to the study of intelligence.
Peacekeeping operations have become an increasingly important sub-set of military operations, especially for the U.S. Armed Forces, but also for most military establishments of the developed world. This remarkable book is anthology of articles written by some very thoughtful authors on how to construct an effective intelligence sub-system to support worldwide peacekeeping operations. Its sections on the UN and intelligence are especially relevant as the UN prepares to deploy 26,000 peacekeepers into Darfur Province, Sudan. The book draws heavily on recent peacekeeping operations in the Balkans, but clearly is primarily concerned with support for future operations. All the individual articles contain practical and effective concepts for providing intelligence support to peacekeeping operations. Mathew Aid has an especially interesting article on the methodology of producing peacekeeping intelligence.
Peacekeeping operations are difficult and often dangerous for the troops involved in them. But, intelligence support to these types of operations is equally demanding and must be carefully tailored to specific operations. Yet good intelligence support can save the lives of both troops and civilians and greatly increase the odds for the success of such operations. This book is an excellent guide for those wishing to build an effective intelligence infrastructure to support all peacekeeping operations.
One of the editors of this book is Robert D. Steele. Steele is an informed critic of the U.S. Intelligence System and has offered a number of realistic ideas to transform that system into a functioning intelligence producer. One Steele's concepts is to design intelligence around real threats and needs rather than blindly building intelligence programs then trying to find a need for them. He has repeatedly noted that there ought to be an intelligence sub-system for such missions as peacekeeping. This book goes a long way towards designing such a sub-system.
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