A collection of documents relating to the UKUSA Agreement and the development of Five Eyes intelligence sharing practices, released following a US freedom of information challenge by Privacy International.
In July 2017, our partner Privacy International, supported by Yale Law School’s Media Freedom and Information Access Clinic, launched a legal challenge in the US which sought to compel the US National Security Agency (NSA) and a number of other US agencies to release records related to the UKUSA Agreement: a remarkably wide-ranging agreement which lies at the heart of the intelligence sharing practices of the Five Eyes alliance, comprising intelligence services from the US, UK, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. These documents were of paramount concern, it was argued, given that ‘the public lacks even basic information about the Fives Eyes alliance, including the current text of the Agreement and the rules and regulations that govern… the government’s exchange of signals intelligence it has acquired, stored and/or analysed with the other members of the Five Eyes alliance.’
This collection brings together over 70 documents which were disclosed as a result of this legal case, including those released by the NSA, the US Department of State, and the US Department of Defense. While many are heavily redacted – and a large number of records have been withheld in full – the documents shed light on important aspects of the development of the intelligence sharing partnership in the postwar era and the evolution of the Five Eyes Alliance over the last 70 years.
Importantly, the disclosures also extend significantly beyond the proactive declassifications by the NSA and GCHQ in 2010, which included the text of the original British-US Communication Intelligence Agreement (BRUSA), signed in March 1946, as well as a draft version of an updated UK-US Communications Intelligence Agreement (UKUSA) in 1956. They also include a number of additional UK documents, including from the Ministry of Defence, the Foreign Office and GCHQ.
The Privacy International FOIA timeline
Dec 2016: Privacy International submitted separate FOIA requests to the US National Security Agency, the US State Department and the Director of National Intelligence, seeking ‘access to records relating to the British-United States Communication Intelligence Agreement (now known as the “UKUSA Agreement”).’ A similar request to the National Archives and Records Administration had been made in March 2016.
Apr 2017: The NSA denied the release of further records, arguing that they were properly classified in accordance with Executive Order 13526 (pertaining to ‘Classified National Security Information’). The other agencies provided similar denials.
Jul 2017: Privacy International challenged the refusals in US District Court for the District of Columbia, seeking to compel the release of the requested records.
Aug 2017: The Government agencies filed a coordination response to the legal challenge, arguing that the refusals were proper under US law.
Nov 2017 – Oct 2018: The US Department of State released 21 documents in eight tranches.
Apr-Sep 2018: The NSA released 51 documents in five tranches.
Jul 2018: The US Department of Defense released one document.
