Croatian security and intelligence system
Encyclopedia
The core of the security and intelligence system of the Republic of Croatia consists of two security
and intelligence agencies
:
These agencies conduct their activities in accordance with the Constitution, relevant national legislation, the National Security Strategy, the Defence Strategy and the Annual Guidelines for the Work of Security Services. Their work is subject to the scrutiny by the Croatian Parliament, the President of the Republic
, the Government
, the Office of the National Security Council
and the Council for the civilian scrutiny of the security intelligence agencies.
The community of intelligence agencies, military and civilian, was established by Croatia during the Croatian war of independence
, becoming integral to the Croatian war effort against Yugoslav and Serbia
n forces. Their total estimated spending is $66,694,656.84.
, the President of the Republic and the Prime Minister cooperate in directing the operations of the security services. The appointment of directors of security agencies is counter-signed by the President and the Prime Minister, upon a prior opinion of the Domestic Policy and National Security Committee of the Croatian Parliament.
- NSA.
. SOA endeavours to detect and prevent activities aimed at threatening the independence and sovereignty of the Republic of Croatia, violent subversion of state authorities, basic freedom and human rights guaranteed by the Constitution and other laws, and the basic economic system of the Republic of Croatia.
Abroad, SOA systematically collects, analyzes, processes and evaluates the political, economic, security and military data relating to foreign countries, international governmental and non-governmental organizations, political, military and economic alliances, groups and individuals exhibiting intentions, capabilities, covert plans and secret activities aimed at threatening the national security.
of the state bodies. The director of ZSIS is appointed by the Government, at the proposal of the Council for the Coordination of Security Intelligence Agencies.
Aside the above-mentioned scrutiny there is within each agency a special organisational unit responsible for the scrutiny of the work of its employees.
and territorial integrity of the Republic of Croatia (liberation of the occupied territories of Croatia), problems of regional security (resolution of the crises in Bosnia and Herzegovina
), international terrorism and organized crime
, counter-intelligence
protection. From the beginning, the focus of the intelligence work of the intelligence community was the territorial integrity of Croatia and regional stability, and two thirds of the operations and projects was devoted to these goals. Only one third of the capacity was directed toward international terrorism, organized crime and counter-intelligence protection.
(Ured za nacionalnu sigurnost or UNS) was established. Two years later, on 17 May 1995. the Croatian parliament adopted the National Security Office Act. In only 17 short articles, the tasks of UNS were outlined as were the details of its internal structure. According to that Act, three services were founded and fall under its jurisdiction:
In order to perform the professional and technical activities of the National Security Office, the following services (or its organizational units) were formed:
This two services were not regulated by any legislative acts, rather only by the acts on internal organization.
The Director of the UNS, appointed by the President, was responsible to the President of the Republic for the work of the UNS and the individual services of the National Security Office.
The core of the intelligence community consisted of four intelligence agencies:
The Croatian President provided guidelines for UNS and the Croatian intelligence community operations. The UNS director and state ministers assigned tasks to the services under their authority. The yearly operational plan of the intelligence community was prepared by KOOZ and it included projects and operative actions in which two or more services were required to take part. SONS approved the yearly operational plan of the intelligence community and supervised its implementation.
Aside from the above mentioned UNS and the agencies, a wider security-system circle also included the Criminal Police, the Military Police, the Customs Service, and the Financial Police, whose representatives could be invited to participate in the KOOZ sessions.
During the 1990s, and especially after the war, the regime used the intelligence agencies for political purposes-not only to harass the opposition but also-in the case of certain high-ranking members of the Tudjman regime-as a means of shoring up their own power against that of others within the inner circle. These services, chiefly the SZUP, the SIS, and the HIS (headed by Tuđman's son Miroslav Tuđman
), were used for political manipulation, blackmail, and by insiders to facilitate lining their own pockets through insider knowledge of privatization deals. At one point, there were even allegations that the services were misused in a Croatian soccer championship to help the team favored by Tuđman, an ardent soccer fan.
and Montenegro
), as partners in development, not as sources of destabilization. Few days later, on 21 March, the Parliament passed the Security Services Act. These laws form the basis for reform of the Croatian intelligence community.
In accordance with Security Services Act three security and intelligence services were founded:
To facilitate the cooperation between the Croatian President and the Prime Minister in directing security and intelligence services operations, the National Security Council
was founded. Furthermore, in order for the operative coordination of the security and intelligence services operations to be realized, the Council for Coordination of Security and Intelligence Agencies was founded. The Office of the National Security Council
was founded for the purpose of performing expert and administrative operations for the National Security Council and the Council for Coordination of Security and Intelligence Agencies.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs
has retained its own department charged with security work, but now it only provides for security and the flow of information to Croatia's diplomatic offices abroad.
These changes have not resolved fully the problems of the agencies. After the new services were established, President Stipe Mesić proposed appointments for the directors of the agencies, but Prime Minister Ivica Račan
has refused to countersign the appointments. Additional problems were caused by a lack of coordination, since documents and files had to be transferred to the new agencies. Several days before the Office for National Security ceased to exist (on March 31), its outgoing head Tomislav Karamarko
ordered all such materials to be moved to the Croatian State Archives
. This gesture was a protest against the reorganization of the security and intelligence services. It also turned out to be a major scandal since the sensitive and confidential documents were not guarded at the archives, where they languished for several days before being taken to the Intelligence Agency.
Security agency
A security agency is a governmental organization which conducts intelligence activities for the internal security of a nation. They are the domestic cousins of foreign intelligence agencies...
and intelligence agencies
Intelligence agency
An intelligence agency is a governmental agency that is devoted to information gathering for purposes of national security and defence. Means of information gathering may include espionage, communication interception, cryptanalysis, cooperation with other institutions, and evaluation of public...
:
- Security and Intelligence AgencySecurity and Intelligence AgencyThe Security and Intelligence Agency is the Croatian security and intelligence services founded in 2006 upon the passing of the Security and Intelligence System of the Republic of Croatia Act and by combining the former Counterintelligence Agency , and the Intelligence Agency which both ceased to...
(CroatianCroatian languageCroatian is the collective name for the standard language and dialects spoken by Croats, principally in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Serbian province of Vojvodina and other neighbouring countries...
: Sigurnosno-obavještajna agencija or SOA), and - Military Security and Intelligence AgencyMilitary Security and Intelligence AgencyMilitary Security and Intelligence Agency is the Croatian military security and intelligence service founded in 2006 upon the passing of the Security and Intelligence System of the Republic of Croatia Act...
(Vojna sigurnosno-obavještajna agencija or VSOA).
These agencies conduct their activities in accordance with the Constitution, relevant national legislation, the National Security Strategy, the Defence Strategy and the Annual Guidelines for the Work of Security Services. Their work is subject to the scrutiny by the Croatian Parliament, the President of the Republic
President of Croatia
The President of Croatia , officially styled the President of the Republic represents the Republic of Croatia in the country and abroad as the head of state, maintains the regular and coordinated operation and stability of the national government system, and safeguards the independence and...
, the Government
Government of Croatia
The Government of the Republic of Croatia , commonly abbreviated to Croatian Government , is the main element of the executive branch of government in Croatia. It is led by the President of the Government , commonly abbreviated to premier...
, the Office of the National Security Council
Office of the National Security Council
The Office of the National Security Council is the body of the Croatian security and intelligence system which provides support in the field of national security for major state institutions...
and the Council for the civilian scrutiny of the security intelligence agencies.
The community of intelligence agencies, military and civilian, was established by Croatia during the Croatian war of independence
Croatian War of Independence
The Croatian War of Independence was fought from 1991 to 1995 between forces loyal to the government of Croatia—which had declared independence from the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia —and the Serb-controlled Yugoslav People's Army and local Serb forces, with the JNA ending its combat...
, becoming integral to the Croatian war effort against Yugoslav and Serbia
Serbia
Serbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans...
n forces. Their total estimated spending is $66,694,656.84.
Organization
According to the Constitution of CroatiaConstitution of Croatia
The current Constitution of the Republic of Croatia was adopted by the Parliament of the Republic of Croatia on December 22, 1990. It replaced the Constitution of 1974 ratified in socialist Yugoslavia...
, the President of the Republic and the Prime Minister cooperate in directing the operations of the security services. The appointment of directors of security agencies is counter-signed by the President and the Prime Minister, upon a prior opinion of the Domestic Policy and National Security Committee of the Croatian Parliament.
National Security Council
Tasks of cooperation between President of the Republic and the Prime Minister in directing the work of security and intelligence agencies, is within the competence of the National Security Council (Vijeće za nacionalnu sigurnost). Members of NSC are the President of the Republic, the President of the Government, Minister of Defense, Minister of the Interior, Minister of Foreign Affairs and European Integration, Minister of Justice, National Security Advisor to the President of the Republic, the Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Croatia, the Head of UVNS, the Directors of SOA and VSOA, the President of the Parliament also takes part in its work, and if necessary other people as well.Council for the Coordination of Security and Intelligence Services
The Council for the Coordination of Security Intelligence Services (Savjet za koordinaciju sigurnosno-obavještajnih agencija) is responsible for the operational coordination of the work of security intelligence agencies. Members of the Council are the Member of the Government responsible for national security, as the Chairperson of the Council; the National Security Advisor to the President of the Republic, as Deputy Chairperson; the Directors of security and intelligence agencies and the Head of UVNS. If necessary, other persons from judicial, police, inspection, oversight and other entities and institutions may take part in the meetings of the Council.Office of the National Security Council
The Office of the National Security Council (Ured Vijeća za nacionalnu sigurost or UVNS) is the body of the Croatian security and intelligence system which provides support in the field of national security for major state institutions. The UVNS has three major duties: support for the National Security Council and Council for the Coordination of Security Services; analysis of the Agencies reportssand and expert scrutiny of the work of the security and intelligence agencies and OTC; information securityInformation security
Information security means protecting information and information systems from unauthorized access, use, disclosure, disruption, modification, perusal, inspection, recording or destruction....
- NSA.
Security and Intelligence Agency
The Security and Intelligence Agency (SOA) systematically collects, analyzes and processes data significant for the national securityNational security
National security is the requirement to maintain the survival of the state through the use of economic, diplomacy, power projection and political power. The concept developed mostly in the United States of America after World War II...
. SOA endeavours to detect and prevent activities aimed at threatening the independence and sovereignty of the Republic of Croatia, violent subversion of state authorities, basic freedom and human rights guaranteed by the Constitution and other laws, and the basic economic system of the Republic of Croatia.
Abroad, SOA systematically collects, analyzes, processes and evaluates the political, economic, security and military data relating to foreign countries, international governmental and non-governmental organizations, political, military and economic alliances, groups and individuals exhibiting intentions, capabilities, covert plans and secret activities aimed at threatening the national security.
Military Security and Intelligence Agency
The Military Security and Intelligence Agency (VSOA) is a unit that falls within the Ministry of Defence. In its intelligence operations VSOA collects, analyzes, processes and evaluates data on military forces and defence systems of other countries, on external pressures which may influence the defence security, as well as on activities abroad, aimed at threatening the defence security of the country. VSOA, on the territory of the Republic of Croatia, collects, analyzes processes and evaluates data on the intentions, capabilities and plans made by persons, groups, and organizations in the country with the intention of threatening the defence power of the country; and takes necessary measures to detect, monitor and counteract these activities.Information Systems Security Bureau
The Information Systems Security Bureau (Zavod za sigurnost informacijskih sustava or ZSIS) is the central state authority responsible for the technical areas of information securityInformation security
Information security means protecting information and information systems from unauthorized access, use, disclosure, disruption, modification, perusal, inspection, recording or destruction....
of the state bodies. The director of ZSIS is appointed by the Government, at the proposal of the Council for the Coordination of Security Intelligence Agencies.
Operational Technology Centre for the Surveillance of Telecommunications
The Operational Technology Centre for the Surveillance of Telecommunications ( or OTC) is a small agency in the frame of the Croatian intelligence and security community responsible for activation and management of the measures of secret surveillance of telecommunication services. The director of OTC is appointed by the Government, at the proposal of the Council for the Coordination of Security Intelligence Agencies.Scrutiny
The work of security and intelligence agencies is subject to the scrutiny conducted by the Croatian Parliament (parliamentary scrutiny), the Office of the National Security Council (professional scrutiny) and the Council for the Civilian Scrutiny of Security and Intelligence Agencies (civilian scrutiny).Aside the above-mentioned scrutiny there is within each agency a special organisational unit responsible for the scrutiny of the work of its employees.
Parliamentary scrutiny
The scrutiny of the Croatian Parliament over security intelligence agencies is conducted directly or through the Parliamentary Committee for Domestic Policy and National Security , and the Council for the Civilian Scrutiny of the Security Intelligence Agencies.Professional scrutiny
Professional scrutiny over the work of security intelligence agencies and of the OTC is performed by the Office of the National Security Council.Civilian scrutiny
Croatia is one of few countries where the civilian scrutiny over the agencies work is conducted along with the parliamentary and professional scrutiny. For the purpose of ensuring of the civilian scrutiny over the work of security intelligence agencies in 2002 was established the Council for Civilian Scrutiny of Security and Intelligence Agencies pursuant to the Security Services Act of 28 March 2002. The Council consists of a chairperson and six members, all of whom are appointed by the Croatian Parliament. The Council's chairperson and members are appointed for a term of four years, after which they may be re-appointed. The Council monitors the legality of the work of security agencies, monitors and oversees application of measures for confidential data gathering which limits constitutionally-guaranteed human rights and fundamental freedoms.History
After the first democratic, multiparty elections held in 1990, the process of building state institutions commenced within the framework of newly-sovereign Croatia.Early 1990s
On 27 May 1991, President Franjo Tuđman established the Bureau for the Protection of the Constitutional Order (Ured za zaštitu ustavnog poretka or UZUP). The scope of its work, and its primary task was providing advice and professional assistance, in the area of protection of the constitutional order, to competent authorities performing functions in the Ministry of Interior, the Ministry of Defence and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. As a part of the system for the protection of constitutional order, the Bureau was responsible for coordinating and directing the system as a whole. The Service for the Protection of the Constitutional Order, in the framework of the MoI, the Security and Information Service in the MoD, and the Research and Documentation Service of the MFA were all obliged to report to the Bureau on their respective work and results. The Bureau reported to the President of the Republic and to the top state authorities. These authorities, i.e. their services, were the foundation of the system for the protection of the constitutional order.1993-2002
The main tasks of the intelligence community in the 1990s included the protection of the sovereigntySovereignty
Sovereignty is the quality of having supreme, independent authority over a geographic area, such as a territory. It can be found in a power to rule and make law that rests on a political fact for which no purely legal explanation can be provided...
and territorial integrity of the Republic of Croatia (liberation of the occupied territories of Croatia), problems of regional security (resolution of the crises in Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bosnia and Herzegovina , sometimes called Bosnia-Herzegovina or simply Bosnia, is a country in Southern Europe, on the Balkan Peninsula. Bordered by Croatia to the north, west and south, Serbia to the east, and Montenegro to the southeast, Bosnia and Herzegovina is almost landlocked, except for the...
), international terrorism and organized crime
Organized crime
Organized crime or criminal organizations are transnational, national, or local groupings of highly centralized enterprises run by criminals for the purpose of engaging in illegal activity, most commonly for monetary profit. Some criminal organizations, such as terrorist organizations, are...
, counter-intelligence
Counter-intelligence
Counterintelligence or counter-intelligence refers to efforts made by intelligence organizations to prevent hostile or enemy intelligence organizations from successfully gathering and collecting intelligence against them. National intelligence programs, and, by extension, the overall defenses of...
protection. From the beginning, the focus of the intelligence work of the intelligence community was the territorial integrity of Croatia and regional stability, and two thirds of the operations and projects was devoted to these goals. Only one third of the capacity was directed toward international terrorism, organized crime and counter-intelligence protection.
National Security Office
UZUP ceased to exist on 21 March 1993 when, by the decision of the President Tuđman, the National Security OfficeNational Security Office (Croatia)
The National Security Office was Croatian executive state authority which coordinated, directed, and supervised the work of government services whose activities are connected to...
(Ured za nacionalnu sigurnost or UNS) was established. Two years later, on 17 May 1995. the Croatian parliament adopted the National Security Office Act. In only 17 short articles, the tasks of UNS were outlined as were the details of its internal structure. According to that Act, three services were founded and fall under its jurisdiction:
- Croatian Intelligence ServiceCroatian Intelligence ServiceHrvatska izvještajna služba is Croatia's main foreign intelligence and analysis agency; it is the only agency authorized to conduct operations abroad, and is permitted to co-operate with the agencies of friendly nations. The HIS also conducts daily intelligence briefings for the President of...
(Hrvatska izvještajna služba or HIS), - Security Headquarters (Stožer osiguranja),
- Supervision Service (Nadzorna služba).
In order to perform the professional and technical activities of the National Security Office, the following services (or its organizational units) were formed:
- National Center for Electronic Monitoring (Nacionalna služba elektroničkog izviđanja or NSEI)
- Intelligence Academy (Obavještajna akademija).
This two services were not regulated by any legislative acts, rather only by the acts on internal organization.
The Director of the UNS, appointed by the President, was responsible to the President of the Republic for the work of the UNS and the individual services of the National Security Office.
Intelligence Community
The intelligence community goals and tasks were set by the Joint National Security Committee (SONS) and the Intelligence Community Coordination Committee (KOOZ). SONS was in charge of directing and coordinating state ministries in conducting national security operations, whereas KOOZ was responsible for the execution of tasks given by SONS.The core of the intelligence community consisted of four intelligence agencies:
- Croatian Intelligence ServiceCroatian Intelligence ServiceHrvatska izvještajna služba is Croatia's main foreign intelligence and analysis agency; it is the only agency authorized to conduct operations abroad, and is permitted to co-operate with the agencies of friendly nations. The HIS also conducts daily intelligence briefings for the President of...
(HIS) - Service for the Protection of the Constitutional Order (SZUP)
- Security Intelligence Service of the Ministry of Defence (SIS)
- Directorate of Intelligence Affairs of the Croatian Army Headquarters (ObU GSOSRH)
The Croatian President provided guidelines for UNS and the Croatian intelligence community operations. The UNS director and state ministers assigned tasks to the services under their authority. The yearly operational plan of the intelligence community was prepared by KOOZ and it included projects and operative actions in which two or more services were required to take part. SONS approved the yearly operational plan of the intelligence community and supervised its implementation.
Aside from the above mentioned UNS and the agencies, a wider security-system circle also included the Criminal Police, the Military Police, the Customs Service, and the Financial Police, whose representatives could be invited to participate in the KOOZ sessions.
During the 1990s, and especially after the war, the regime used the intelligence agencies for political purposes-not only to harass the opposition but also-in the case of certain high-ranking members of the Tudjman regime-as a means of shoring up their own power against that of others within the inner circle. These services, chiefly the SZUP, the SIS, and the HIS (headed by Tuđman's son Miroslav Tuđman
Miroslav Tuđman
Miroslav Tuđman is a Croatian scientist and politician, the son of first president Franjo Tuđman.Tuđman was born in Belgrade where he completed grade school, before he moved with his family to Zagreb in 1961.He was born on his parents 1st anniversary...
), were used for political manipulation, blackmail, and by insiders to facilitate lining their own pockets through insider knowledge of privatization deals. At one point, there were even allegations that the services were misused in a Croatian soccer championship to help the team favored by Tuđman, an ardent soccer fan.
2002-2006
As parliamentary democracy developed in the Republic of Croatia, reforms in security system were continued. On 19 March 2002, the Croatian Parliament adopted the National Security Strategy. The new Strategy, which is oriented toward integration into NATO and the EU, recognizes all the neighboring states, including the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (now SerbiaSerbia
Serbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans...
and Montenegro
Montenegro
Montenegro Montenegrin: Crna Gora Црна Гора , meaning "Black Mountain") is a country located in Southeastern Europe. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea to the south-west and is bordered by Croatia to the west, Bosnia and Herzegovina to the northwest, Serbia to the northeast and Albania to the...
), as partners in development, not as sources of destabilization. Few days later, on 21 March, the Parliament passed the Security Services Act. These laws form the basis for reform of the Croatian intelligence community.
In accordance with Security Services Act three security and intelligence services were founded:
- Intelligence Agency (Obavještajna agencija or OA), formerly HIS,
- Counterintelligence Agency (Protuobavještajna agencija or POA), formerly SZUP,
- Military Security Agency (Vojna sigurnosna agencija or VSA), formerly SIS.
To facilitate the cooperation between the Croatian President and the Prime Minister in directing security and intelligence services operations, the National Security Council
National Security Council (Croatia)
The National Security Council is the central coordinating body of the Croatian security and intelligence system, composed of the President of the Republic, the President of the Government, the Minister of Defense, the Minister of the Interior, the Minister of Foreign Affairs and European...
was founded. Furthermore, in order for the operative coordination of the security and intelligence services operations to be realized, the Council for Coordination of Security and Intelligence Agencies was founded. The Office of the National Security Council
Office of the National Security Council
The Office of the National Security Council is the body of the Croatian security and intelligence system which provides support in the field of national security for major state institutions...
was founded for the purpose of performing expert and administrative operations for the National Security Council and the Council for Coordination of Security and Intelligence Agencies.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Ministry of Foreign Affairs and European Integration (Croatia)
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and European Integration of the Republic of Croatia is the ministry in the Government of Croatia which is in charge of foreign relations and admission into the European Union.-Foreign affairs ministers:...
has retained its own department charged with security work, but now it only provides for security and the flow of information to Croatia's diplomatic offices abroad.
These changes have not resolved fully the problems of the agencies. After the new services were established, President Stipe Mesić proposed appointments for the directors of the agencies, but Prime Minister Ivica Račan
Ivica Racan
Ivica Račan was a Croatian career politician, leader of the League of Communists of Croatia and later Social Democratic Party from 1989 to 2007...
has refused to countersign the appointments. Additional problems were caused by a lack of coordination, since documents and files had to be transferred to the new agencies. Several days before the Office for National Security ceased to exist (on March 31), its outgoing head Tomislav Karamarko
Tomislav Karamarko
Tomislav Karamarko is a Croatian politician, and the current Minister of Internal Affairs in the Government of Croatia....
ordered all such materials to be moved to the Croatian State Archives
Croatian State Archives
The Croatian State Archives are the national archives of Croatia located in its capital, Zagreb. The history of the state archives can be traced back to the 17th century. There are also regional state archives located in Bjelovar, Dubrovnik, Gospić, Karlovac, Osijek, Pazin, Rijeka, Sisak,...
. This gesture was a protest against the reorganization of the security and intelligence services. It also turned out to be a major scandal since the sensitive and confidential documents were not guarded at the archives, where they languished for several days before being taken to the Intelligence Agency.