Trading Secrets: Spies and Intelligence in an Age of Terror

Whose agenda do spies serve? In this gripping book, former FT security correspondent Mark Huband takes us inside the shadowy world of intelligence-gathering. Drawing on archive material, unpublished letters and exclusive interviews, he explores how the role and purpose of 'intelligence' has evolved from its origins in World War II to today's War on Terror. Drawing on his unique sources, he exposes the hidden blunders of the western intelligence agencies, such as the CIA's total misreading of the KGB's intentions during the Cold War, and the politicisation of intelligence in the build up to the Iraq War, and throws light on their evolving methods, including the manipulation of the media. Ranging from Kandahar to Belfast, this thriller-like book provides not only a compelling account of modern spycraft but a thoughtful and sobering analysis of its current fitness to combat the threat of 21st century terrorism.