Covert Action: Perils and Advantages

Year 2022, Volume: 4 Issue: 2 - (Special Issue on Intelligence), 1 - 12, 17.07.2022

Halil Şener

https://doi.org/10.53451/ijps.1056972

Abstract

Örtülü operasyonlar, dış politikada devletlerin siyasi, askeri, ekonomik, ideolojik etkiler yaratabildiği ve bu etkileri yaratırken rollerini gizleyebildikleri, devletlerin “gizli eli” olarak nitelendirilen istihbarat faaliyetleridir. Geleneksel istihbarat faaliyetleri içerisinde yaklaşık yüzde beşlik bir kullanım oranına sahip olsa da devletlerin dış politika araçları içerisinde kilit ve kolaylaştırıcı bir etkiye sahiptir. Devletler, geleneksel istihbarat faaliyetleri yürütmenin yanı sıra bu faaliyetlerle erişilmesi mümkün olmayan dış politika hedeflerine kolaylaştırıcı olması nedeniyle örtülü operasyonlar vasıtasıyla ulaşmaya çalışmaktadır. Örtülü operasyonlar, uluslararası sistemde devletlere kapasite ve etki sağlamakta, “makul inkâr edilebilirlik” bağlamında devletlerin olaylara dahiliyetlerini gizleyebilmektedir. Kısa vadede hızlı ve düşük maliyetli çözümler getirse de hasım devlette uzun vadeli bir düşmanlık bırakabilmektedir. Çalışmada araştırma yöntemi olarak literatür taraması yönteminden faydalanılmıştır. Çalışmada İran, Arnavutluk ve Suriye’de gerçekleştirilen örtülü operasyonlar incelenerek, istihbarat çalışmaları literatürüne katkı sağlamak amaçlanmaktadır.

Keywords

Dış Politika, İstihbarat, İstihbarat Teşkilatları, Milli Güvenlik, Örtülü Operasyonlar

Covert Action: Perils and Advantages

Abstract

Covert action is intelligence activity described as the "hidden hand" of states, in which states can create political, military, economic, and ideological effects in foreign policy. While it has a use rate of around five percent in traditional intelligence activities, it has a vital and facilitating effect on states’ foreign policy. States seek to achieve foreign policy goals through covert action thanks to its facilitating nature. It provides capacity and can hide states' involvement in events via "plausible deniability". While it may provide quick and cost-effective solutions in the short term, it may leave a long-term hostility in the hostile state. The article uses a literature review as a research method. It aims to contribute to intelligence studies literature by analyzing covert actions in Iran, Albania, and Syria.

Keywords

Covert Action, Foreign Policy, Intelligence, Intelligence Services, National Security

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