Documents from US agency show that Canberra spies pleaded for help to increase surveillance on terror suspects

This article is more than 6 years old

This article is more than 6 years old

Australia’s intelligence agency asked for more help from its US counterparts to increase surveillance on Australians suspected of involvement in international extremist activities.

Documents from the US National Security Agency, published by Glenn Greenwald on Tuesday in his book No Place to Hide: Edward Snowden, the NSA and the Surveillance State, reveal new details of Australia’s close relationship with the US spy agency.

In an extract on 21 February 2011 from the acting deputy director of Australia's Defence Signals Directorate, which has since been re-named the Australian Signals Directorate (ASD), the director pleads for additional surveillance on Australians.



“We would very much welcome the opportunity to extend that partnership with NSA to cover the increasing number of Australians involved in international extremist activities – in particular Australians involved with AQAP,” the extract said.

AQAP stands for Al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula, an organisation that is proscribed as a terrorist organisation under Australia’s Commonwealth Criminal Code.

A document from Glenn Greenwald's new book showing Australia's plea for more help from the NSA. Photograph: Glenn Greenwald Photograph: /Glenn Greenwald

The letter says the Australian spy agency has enjoyed a long and very productive partnership with the NSA in obtaining access to "minimised access to United States warranted collection against our highest value terrorist targets in Indonesia”.

“This access has been critical to DSD’s efforts to disrupt and contain the operational capabilities of terrorists in our region as highlighted by the recent arrest of fugitive Bali bomber Umar Patek,” the letter said.

Patek was involved in the 2002 Bali bombings in which 202 people died, including 88 Australians. He is serving a 20-year sentence in Indonesia after he was arrested in January 2011.

The secretary of the New South Wales Council for Civil Liberties, Stephen Blanks, said Australians were entitled to know the extent of surveillance activities conducted by foreign intelligence agencies.

“if Australia’s security agencies have difficulty with obtaining regular and reliable access to communications of Australians who are suspected of involvement in international extremist activities, the proper course would be for them to ask the Australian government for whatever additional powers are required rather than to go secretly to the US agencies,” he said.

A statement from the defence department said: "As a matter of longstanding practice and principle, Defence will not comment on specific intelligence matters.

"All communication interception activities carried out by ASD are conducted in accordance with Australian law. As made clear in the Intelligence Services Act 2001, this includes seeking specific authorisation either from the Minister for Defence or the Minister for Foreign Affairs to produce intelligence on an Australian. For matters relating to threats to security, the Attorney-General must also support the approval.

"All such authorisations are independently examined by the Inspector-General of Intelligence and Security to ensure that they are granted in accordance with the law."

Greenwald’s book reveals never-before seen NSA documents based on disclosures from whistleblower Edward Snowden.

Australia, the United Kingdom, Canada and New Zealand have developed a close relationship with the US surveillance agency as part of the “Five Eyes” agreement on intelligence sharing.

Another extract from a document published in Greenwald’s book describes Australia and the other Five Eyes nations' relationship as the highest tier of “comprehensive cooperation”.

A document describing the 'Five Eyes' Photograph: /gg

Greenwald writes that the Five Eyes members share their surveillance activities each year at a Signals Development conference “where they boast of their expansion and the prior year’s successes”.

The release of the slides is the latest in a series of revelations about Australia’s intelligence activities based on the NSA documents.

The Defence Signals Directorate offered to share information collected about ordinary Australian citizens with its major intelligence partners, according to a secret 2008 document.

Australia's spy agencies have also attempted to listen in on the personal phone calls of the Indonesian president, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, and have targeted his wife's mobile phones.