CIA/European Division/London Station
 CIA/European Division/London Station  (CIA Station)    | |
|---|---|
| Location | London, England |
| Leader | London Chief of Station |
| The main centre of the US Central Intelligence Agency in the UK. | |
See also UK/Deep State and US/Ambassador/UK for further CIA activities.
The CIA London Station is the main centre of the US Central Intelligence Agency for handling the UK, a large station traditionally occupied by a senior American spook as Chief of Station
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Sits on the UK's Joint Intelligence Committee
Since the Second World War, the London chief and his staff have not only been on hand to consult their British counterparts but also sits on some of Whitehall's key intelligence committees. This includes the Joint Intelligence Committee (JIC). The JIC meetings are usually in two parts, with the 'domestic' side coming second. "Our man traditionally stands up and leaves when the meeting turns to UK material," said an old hand from the CIA headquarters in Langley, Virginia. [1]
Bureaucratic infighting
For decades, the CIA has had the right to appoint the station chief who runs US intelligence operations in London and liaises with MI6 and GCHQ. In 2009, the National Security Agency argued that they and not the CIA should run intelligence operations in the UK because they have more people on the ground and the work they do has far greater value to both countries. There are thousands of Americans based in Britain who work for NSA and work closely with GCHQ. By comparison, the CIA station, based in the US Embassy in Grosvenor Square, is important but smaller.[2]
Own Islamist networks
In February 2009, journalist Tim Shipman revealed in The Spectator that the CIA was "running its own agent networks on an unprecedented scale in the British Pakistani community."[3]
