Senior officials from about two dozen of the world’s major intelligence agencies including the US, China and India held a secret meeting on the fringes of the Shangri-La Dialogue security meeting in Singapore this weekend.
No Russian representative was present, one of the sources said.
Such meetings are organised by the Singapore government and have been discreetly held at a separate venue alongside the security summit for several years, they said.
The US was represented by Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines, the head of her country’s intelligence community, while China was among the other countries present, despite the tensions between the two superpowers.
Samant Goel, the head of India’s overseas intelligence gathering agency, the Research and Analysis Wing, also attended.
“The meeting is an important fixture on the international shadow agenda,” said one person with knowledge of the discussions. “Given the range of countries involved, it is not a festival of tradecraft, but rather a way of promoting a deeper understanding of intentions and bottom lines, reports CNBC.
“There is an unspoken code among intelligence services that they can talk when more formal and open diplomacy is harder - it is a very important factor during times of tension, and the Singapore event helps promote that.”
All five sources who discussed the meetings declined to be identified because of the sensitivity of the matter.
A spokesperson for the Singapore Ministry of Defence said that while attending the Shangri-La Dialogue, “participants including senior officials from intelligence agencies also take the opportunity to meet their counterparts.”
“The Singapore Ministry of Defence may facilitate some of these bilateral or multilateral meetings,” the spokesperson said. “Participants have found such meetings held on the sidelines of the (dialogue) beneficial.”
The US Embassy in Singapore said it had no information on the meeting. The Chinese and Indian governments did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
The United States, Britain, Canada, Australia and New Zealand operate what is called the Five Eyes network to gather and share a broad range of intelligence, and their intelligence officials meet frequently.
Ukraine’s deputy defence minister, Volodymr V. Havrylov, was at the Shangri-La Dialogue but said he did not attend the intelligence meeting.
Another of the sources said the tone at the meeting was collaborative and cooperative, and not confrontational.
At the main security dialogue, more than 600 delegates from 49 countries held three days of plenary sessions, as well as closed-door bilateral and multilateral meetings at the sprawling Shangri-La Hotel.
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese gave the keynote address while US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin, Chinese Defence Minister Li Shangfu and counterparts from Britain, Japan, Canada, Indonesia and South Korea also spoke.
Bd-pratidin English/Golam Rosul
