Covert Actions and the Realm of Legitimacy

Covert Actions and the Realm of Legitimacy
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Covert Actions and the Realm of Legitimacy
The changing foreign policy and national security priorities have cast doubts on the future of covert actions. Nations and individuals are becoming sensitive to the understanding that the intelligence community surveils their data. Concerns have been raised on the covert avenues that nations employ to fight global crimes. Present trends indicate that the fight against terrorism has risen to become the primary priority in the intelligence community. The emphasis on counter-terrorism activities has been accompanied by expanded budgets, intelligence programs, and capabilities. Amidst such advancements comes the growth in covert actions. As more intelligence is gathered on illegal or terrorist activities throughout the world, the intelligence community makes every attempt to avert any ills that may threaten security. The recent past has accompanied concerns about nations surveilling one another, thereby raising the question of the legitimacy of covert actions even amidst the fight against terrorism. This paper assesses the prospect of covert actions and the realm of legitimacy. Understanding covert actions and the value they add to national security should help settle the debates on legitimacy through the ethical realms.
Covert Actions
A covert action or operation has attracted different definitions considering the secrecy surrounding such activities. The U.S. government and any other government indulged in covert operations normally intend to keep the elements of the actions as secretive as possible. Nevertheless, covert actions refer to operations, activities, or actions conducted by the intelligence community to conceal the identities of the perpetrators of the operations. An ideal covert action should occur without the targeted parties noticing any malicious activities within their territories. The National Security Act Sec. 503 (e) defines covert action as an activity of the government geared towards influencing military, economic, and political conditions abroad in which the role of the perpetrating agencies is intended not to be acknowledged publicly. Covert operations are conducted because both policymakers and the intelligence community believe that conducting secret operations is the only avenue to achieve the desired outcomes. Most governments employ covert operations to stay ahead in enemy activities and mitigate outcomes that threaten security.[Melancon, Louis P. "Altering the Deal: Explaining Variation in U.S. Intelligence Reform." Order No. 10978619, The George Washington University, 2019, 109.]
The U.S. has a structured legal platform in which to understand the scope of covert actions. The U.S. law demands that the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) must lead in all the covert actions. However, other intelligence community members, such as the NSA, can be involved in covert actions if sanctioned by the president. The agencies involved in covert operations must actively inform the president of Congress on the progress of the actions. The authority accorded to the CIA in conducting covert actions emanate from the National Security Act of 1947, in which President Ronald Reagan issued an...