India-Canada stand-off: What is the Five Eyes Alliance
Context- Since Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau alleged in his country’s Parliament on September 19 that the Indian government may have “potential links” to the killing of separatist leader Harmeet Singh Nijjar in Canada, the ties between the two countries are under strain.
(Credits- NewsClick)
US Ambassador to Canada David Cohen has now said in an interview with Canada’s CTV that it was “shared intelligence among Five Eyes partners” that helped “lead” Canada to the claims that PM Trudeau made. “Five Eyes” refers to an intelligence-sharing alliance of the United States, United Kingdom, Australia, Canada and New Zealand.
Why was the Five Eyes Alliance formed?
- According to the Canadian government’s website, “These partner countries share a broad range of intelligence with one another in one of the world’s most unified multilateral arrangements.
- The Five Eyes agreement stands out from other arrangements because the parties are diverse societies, governed by rule of law and robust human rights and are bonded by a common language. These characteristics aid the partners in sharing information with one another to protect their shared national interests.”
- Alliance’s origins can be traced to the Second World War. The UK and the US decided to share intelligence after successfully breaking German and Japanese codes, respectively.
- In 1943, the Britain-USA (BRUSA) agreement laid the foundations for what would become the UK-USA (UKUSA) agreement, after UK computer scientist Alan Turing’s visit to Washington and several bilateral visits between the two countries’ officials.
- Following this, the UKUSA was signed in 1946. Canada joined it in 1949, and New Zealand and Australia did so in 1956, forming the alliance. The Agreement was not officially acknowledged though its existence was known about from the 1980s.
How does the Five Eyes Alliance work, exactly?
- Countries often engage with each other on matters of intelligence gathering and security. In recent years, common interests, such as balancing the rise of China, have led to a closer alignment among the Five Eyes countries. Some have attributed their closeness to a common language and mutual trust built over decades of association.
- In 2016, the Five Eyes Intelligence Oversight and Review Council came into being. It includes the non-political intelligence oversight, review, and security entities of the Five Eyes countries. They exchange views of mutual interest, compare best practices, hold conference calls throughout the year and gather in person annually.
- However, that closeness has not always meant uniformity in their foreign policy. Since 2021, New Zealand has stayed away from issuing an outright condemnation of Chinese actions regarding Hong Kong’s political systems and its treatment of the Uighur minority in the Xinjiang region, unlike the other four countries.
- A major reason for this is the deep trade ties between them, with China being the biggest market for New Zealand’s exports.
- Meanwhile, the US has also sought to exert its influence through other groupings with like-minded countries on issues of security, like the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (QUAD) featuring itself, Japan, Australia and India.
And how could Five Eyes play a role in the current India-Canada issue?
- Countries like the US, the UK and Australia especially are seen as close to India. They also have significant Indian and Indian-origin populations within them, similar to Canada. Further, they have also seen some instances of pro-Khalistan activities in the last few years.
- But due to their historical closeness to Canada and the alliance on one hand, and India increasingly asserting itself when it comes to global affairs on the other, showcasing outright support for India or Canada is unlikely.
Conclusion- Given the state of ties, the United States could play a mediating role in the issue once they have clear intelligence and information on the matter. Canada could also approach the US and other partners to share additional information on the investigation, given their wider networks and capabilities.
Syllabus- GS-2; International Relations
Source- Indian Express