Five Eyes, 9-Eyes In Addition To Many More

(Updated: Jan 22, 2014)

On Nov 2, The Guardian published a lenghty article most the Snowden-leaks, which said that likewise the unopen intelligence-sharing grouping of the US, Britain, Canada, Commonwealth of Australia as well as New-Zealand, known every bit 5-Eyes, at that spot are also groups called 9-Eyes as well as 14-Eyes.

According to The Guardian, the start consists of the 5-Eyes countries plus Denmark, France, the Netherlands as well as Kingdom of Norway as well as the latter adding about other 5 European nations. This caused about embarrassment, every bit peculiarly French Republic as well as Holland were heavily opposed to NSA's eavesdropping operations.

For almost everyone the existance of these 'Eyes' came every bit a surprise, but every bit this article volition show, at that spot are also 3-, 4-, 6-, 7-, 8-, 9- as well as 10-Eyes communities. They were created for restricting access to armed forces as well as tidings data to respective numbers of coalition nations. These 'Eyes' are used every bit treatment instructions as well as oftentimes supported past times dedicated communication networks.

- Many novel 'Eyes' - The CFBL Network - Two dissimilar 9-Eyes? -

- The 14-Eyes as well as 3rd as well as quaternary political party partners - The 6, eight as well as 10 Eyes -

- The 5, 4 as well as 3 Eyes - CENTRIXS networks - Conclusion -

Many novel 'Eyes'

First nosotros accept a await at what The Guardian wrote most the 9-Eyes as well as other intelligence-sharing groups:

"The NSA operates inwards unopen co-operation with 4 other English-speaking countries - the UK, Canada, Commonwealth of Australia as well as New Zealand - sharing raw intelligence, funding, technical systems as well as personnel. Their hit flat collective is known every bit the '5-Eyes'.

Beyond that, the NSA has other coalitions, although intelligence-sharing is to a greater extent than restricted for the additional partners: the 9-Eyes, which adds Denmark, France, the Netherlands as well as Norway; the 14-Eyes, including Germany, Belgium, Italy, Kingdom of Spain as well as Sweden; as well as 41-Eyes, adding inwards others inwards the allied coalition inwards Afghanistan."

In a similar article, The New York Times also mentioned these 2 novel Eyes-groups, but without naming the participating countries, as well as instead of the 41-Eyes, adding NACSI, the NATO Advisory Committee for Special Intelligence:

"More express cooperation occurs with many to a greater extent than countries, including formal arrangements called Nine Eyes as well as xiv Eyes as well as Nacsi, an alliance of the agencies of 26 NATO countries".

These novel revelations seem to live on confirmed past times what is said inwards an informative 2012 paper (pdf) most Canada as well as the Five Eyes Intelligence Community:

"The Five Eyes sigint community also plays a ‘core’ role inwards a larger galaxy of sigint organizations found inwards established democratic states, both westward as well as east. Five Eyes ‘plus’ gatherings inwards the westward include Canada’s NATO allies as well as of import non-NATO partners such every bit Sweden. To the east, a Pacific version of the Five Eyes ‘plus’ grouping includes, alongside others, Singapore as well as South Korea. Such extensions add together ‘reach’ as well as ‘layering’ to Five Eyes sigint capabilities."

This text suggests that at that spot are several western Five Eyes 'plus' groups, i of which sounds similar the 14-Eyes mentioned past times The Guardian. The eastern Five Eyes 'plus' refers to the 10-Eyes group, which volition live on described downwardly below.

The existance of these hitherto unknown Eyes-groups came every bit a surprise, because it was mostly assumed that NSA entirely had 2 kinds of partners for sharing signals intelligence:

- 2nd Party: the Five Eyes based upon the UKUSA-Agreement of 1946
- 3rd Party: a hit of countries that receive got bilateral agreements with NSA

The CFBL Network

The term 9-Eyes could already live on found inwards about other sources. One is an extensive article past times the French weblog Zone d'Intérêt most the NATO do Empire Challenge 2008 (EC08), inwards which a issue of operational as well as testing networks were used. One of them is the Combined Federated Battle Laboratories Network (CFBLNet), which is for research, evolution as well as testing on command, control, communication, computer, intelligence, surveillance as well as reconnaissance (C4ISR) systems.

The CFBL network consists of an unclassified (black) backbone network (the Blackbone) with transporting the encrypted traffic of several classified as well as unclassified enclaves every bit its primary purpose. The primary secure domains on the CFBL Blackbone are:

- The CFBLNet Unclassified Enclave (CUE), which is unclassified, but traffic is secured using 128 chip Advanced Encryption Standard (AES) encryption.

- The Four-Eyes Enclave (FEE), which is a classified enclave at the SECRET level, accessible for USA, GBR, CAN as well as AUS only. This enclave was moved from behind the BLUE enclave to the Blackbone inwards 2006.

- The 6-Eyes or BLUE Enclave, which is a classified enclave at the SECRET level, accessible for the Five Eyes plus NATO (see paragraph most 6, eight as well as 10-Eyes)

- The 9-Eyes or NATO RED Enclave, which is also a classified enclave at the SECRET level, accessible for the NATO members of the Five Eyes plus France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Holland as well as Norway. This enclave was established inwards 2006 for classified initiatives alongside NATO members.

- The Initiative Enclaves, which are created temporarily to back upwards specific initiatives as well as are classified according to the first requirements.

We tin run across these parts of the CFBL Network mentioned inwards this slide most the networks used inwards the EC08 exercise:

The diverse networks involved inwards Empire Challenge 2008 (EC08)
(COI = Community of Interest, CFE = CENTRIXS Four Eyes,
DDTE = Distributed Development as well as Test Enterprise)
(full presentation: EC08 Networks (pdf), May 2008)

The 9-Eyes countries are also listed inwards a tabular array inwards a NATO standardization document (pdf) from 2010. There nosotros run across that from the 4-Eyes entirely the US, the U.K. as well as Canada are role of the 9-Eyes, which makes sense, every bit Commonwealth of Australia is non a NATO partner:

This tabular array lists the groups of nations to which about specific multi-national tidings as well as reconnaissance data tin live on released. This is shown past times using the dissemination markings or treatment instructions: REL NATO, REL 4-EYES, REL 9-EYES.

The famous Five Eyes term also has its origins inwards the onetime NSA dissemination marker EYES ONLY, which defined which 'eyes' may run across surely material. Accordingly, documents authorized for unloose to the 5 UKUSA-countries were initially marked every bit AUS/CAN/NZ/UK/US EYES ONLY.

In conversations, allied tidings personnel adopted the term "Five Eyes" every bit a shorthand because it was much easier to say. This term became widely used as well as fifty-fifty got its ain abbreviation: FVEY, which is instantly used inwards REL FVEY, after the EYES ONLY marker was existence replaced past times the REL TO [country/coalition designator] format.

Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 classification business showing the REL FVEY marking

Two dissimilar 9-Eyes?

If nosotros compare the ix members of the CFBLNet NATO domain with the 9-Eyes countries mentioned inwards The Guardian article, nosotros run across about differences:

CFBLNet/NATO:
USA, GBR, CAN, FRA, DEU, ITA, NLD, NOR, ESP

The Guardian:
USA, GBR, CAN, AUS, NZL, FRA, DNK, NLD, NOR

From the European NATO countries, France, Holland as well as Kingdom of Norway are inwards both lists. The Guardian adds Kingdom of Denmark as well as the non-NATO members of the Five Eyes, which leaves Germany, Italy as well as Kingdom of Spain out.

Especially Federal Republic of Federal Republic of Germany as well as Italy non existence included inwards this patently unopen alliance seems strange, every bit both countries participate inwards other coalition groups as well as are both considered to live on 3rd political party partners of NSA. Maybe this explains Federal Republic of Federal Republic of Germany existence "a petty grumpy at non existence invited to bring together the 9-Eyes group" every bit The Guardian read inwards GCHQ documents.

Unfortunately, The Guardian failed to render whatever context or fifty-fifty a fourth dimension menses for their 9-Eyes as well as 14-Eyes listings, which makes it quite hard to discover an explanation for the dissimilar membership countries of these groups.

At start sight it seems at that spot are 2 dissimilar 9-Eyes groups: i patently closely related to NSA, as well as about other i every bit a sharing grouping inwards the CFBLNet environment. But every bit 9-Eyes is used every bit a treatment education for classified information, it has to live on perfectly clear to which grouping of countries data marked REL 9-EYES may live on released. Therefore nosotros receive got to assume at that spot tin live on entirely i 9-Eyes grouping at a time.

The 9-Eyes NATO grouping of the CFBL network was start mentioned inwards 2008 as well as notwithstanding comprised the same nations inwards 2012. In the meantime, Sweden also became a total fellow member of CFBLNet, but non existence a NATO member, it wasn't included inwards the 9-Eyes sharing group.

The CFBLNet countries inwards 2009, with 3 of the Five Eyes countries (yellow line),
vi European NATO countries as well as the NATO organisation (black line),
vi NATO invitee nations (dotted line) as well as 2 non-NATO countries.
(source: published. Some sources say that Norway, Italy, Greece, Turkey, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Japan, South-Korea, Taiwan, State of Israel as well as South Africa are 3rd political party partners too.

If nosotros compare this to the 14-Eyes, nosotros run across that entirely France, Germany, Norway, Italy, Kingdom of Belgium as well as likely Kingdom of Spain are known 3rd political party partners. Sweden, Kingdom of Denmark as well as Holland are not, but it's assumed they had or receive got less formal arrangements for exchanging SIGINT as well as cryptologic data with NSA. This also applies to Republic of Finland as well as Taiwan, as well as thence these countries are sometimes called quaternary political party partners.

It seems at that spot are roughly 3 possibilities:

A. All countries of the 14-Eyes (and later on those of the 9-Eyes) are truly 3rd political party partners, because of having formal arrangements with NSA. Which agency Sweden, Kingdom of Denmark as well as Holland must receive got acquired that seat inwards recent years. Grouping them inwards 2 'Eyes' would entirely brand feel if that's for about specific initiatives.

B. Countries belonging to the 9-Eyes as well as 14-Eyes receive got a to a greater extent than unopen human relationship with NSA as well as are thence somewhere inwards betwixt the 2nd political party as well as the 3rd political party nations. This is what both papers suggest, but it seems non rattling probable that relationships similar these permit that much of (formal) refinement.

C. The 9-Eyes as well as 14-Eyes are groups created for specific goals as well as consist of the Five Eyes with about additional 3rd as well as quaternary political party nations, depending on whether their participation is needed for achieving those goals.

Update:
Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 newly disclosed document has shown that all countries of the 14-Eyes are 3rd Party partners of NSA as well as that the actual call of this grouping is SIGINT Seniors Europe (SSEUR). More most this: 14-Eyes are 3rd Party partner forming the SIGINT Seniors Europe

The 6, eight as well as 10 Eyes

Creating separate access groups for coalition operations, as well as describing them with a surely issue of 'Eyes' tin live on traced dorsum to the early on years of this century. The start occasion seems to receive got been the Joint Warrior Interoperability Demonstration 2003 inwards which also non-traditional partner countries were added to the communications network used past times the UKUSA as well as NATO coalition.

Information sharing betwixt dissimilar groups of coalition partners required that separate domains had to live on created inside i network: inwards 2003, the 5-Eyes countries as well as the NATO organisation comprised the 6-Eyes domain, spell these vi members plus 4 Pacific Rim nations (Japan, South Korea, Thailand as well as Singapore) comprised the 10-Eyes domain. Each domain had its ain Type-2/3DES-encrypted Virtual Private Network (VPN) which ran over a network secured past times classified Type-1 encryption algorithms.

Slide with an overview of the 6-Eyes as well as 10-Eyes network domains
(full presentation: Agile Coalition Environment (pdf), 2003)

The 2004 edition of the Joint Warfighter Interoperability Demonstration also involved South-Korea, officially known every bit the Republic of Korea (ROK). To this end, 3 separate domains inside CFBLNet were created as well as organized into 2 classification levels named 6-Eyes as well as 8-Eyes. The 8-Eyes domain consisted of the 6-Eyes countries plus NATO as well as ROK. The ROK domain was cryptographically isolated from the residue of CFBLNet past times using TACLANE encryptors with Type-1 algorithms.

The 5, 4 as well as 3 Eyes

The long-standing as well as unopen intelligence-sharing community of the Five Eyes was downsized on 2 occasions. First inwards 1985, when New Zealand refused US nuclear-armed or nuclear-powered ships to see its ports. As a result, the isle was cutting out of most tidings arrangements led past times the US. Some SIGINT was notwithstanding existence shared, but New Zealand got no American HUMINT or armed forces tidings anymore, except for operations inwards which it's truly participating.

Things non to live on shared with New Zealand, were 4-Eyes entirely now. Staying exterior most of the allied armed forces operations, New Zealand was also non connected to the CENTRIXS Four Eyes (CFE) network (also called X-Net), which was created inwards 2001 as well as is extensively used for operational coordination betwixt the remaining 4 partners: Australia, Canada, Britain as well as the US. Sites on this network receive got addresses inwards the format www.website.xnet.mnf

For data sharing as well as telephone commutation betwixt these nations, there's also a separate network codenamed STONEGHOST, which is maintained past times the US Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA). This network was previously called Intelink-C, which runs over it, as well as is instantly sometimes referred to every bit Q-Lat or Quad link. Information restricted to the 4-Eyes partners is marked with their respective terra firma codes or the abbreviation thereof: ACGU.

Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 document showing the REL TO USA ACGU marker (source)

For collaborative planning at the strategic flat there's about other network called Pegasus (until 2010: GRIFFIN), which provides secure e-mail, chat as well as VoSIP communications for the 5-Eyes partners, every bit the armed forces cooperation betwixt the US as well as New Zealand was restored i time to a greater extent than inwards 2007. Probably past times then, a separate network called CENTRIXS-NZ was laid up, which connects the Four Eyes with New Zealand. Sharing tidings data betwixt the US as well as the Five Eyes is done through NSANet, which is a TS/SCI network controlled past times NSA.

Another sub-group of the Five Eyes was formed when Canada didn't bring together the US inwards the 2003 state of war against Iraq. With New Zealand also non formally engaging, the 5-Eyes were instantly reduced to simply 3-Eyes: the United States, Britain as well as Australia.
The human relationship betwixt these 3 countries became closer every bit both Britain as well as Commonwealth of Australia were granted an upgrade of their tidings access past times president George W. Bush: both countries were granted (temporary as well as limited) access to America's classified SIPRNet for surely articulation missions. This also reflects their bigger SIGINT collecting capabilities, compared to those of Canada as well as New Zealand.

> See for the latest: NSA's unusual partnerships

CENTRIXS networks

The primary US-led multinational coalition networks are called CENTRIXS, which stands for Combined ENTerprise Regional Information eXchange System. It's a secure broad expanse network (WAN) architecture, which tin live on established according to the demands of a particular coalition do or operation. CENTRIXS supports tidings as well as operations data sharing at the SECRET REL TO [country/coalition designator] level. Some notable CENTRIXS networks are:

- CENTRIXS Four Eyes (CFE) for the US, Britain, Canada as well as Australia.
- CENTRIXS-NZ for the Four Eyes plus New Zealand.
- CENTRIXS-JPN for the US as well as Japan.
- CENTRIXS-K for the US as well as South-Korea.
- CENTRIXS-PHI for the US as well as the Philippines.
- CENTRIXS-CNFC for the Combined Naval Forces CENTCOM (VPN inside GCTF).
- CENTRIXS-MCFI for the Multinational Coalition Forces Iraq.
- CENTRIXS-ISAF (CX-I) which is the US element of the Afghan Mission Network to portion critical battlefield data alongside 50 coalition partners.
- CENTRIXS-GCTF (CX-G) for the Global Counter Terrorism Forces, which is the US coalition network inwards Transitional Islamic State of Afghanistan to portion data alongside to a greater extent than than eighty Troop Contributing Nations.

The countries connected to CENTRIXS-ISAF tin live on recognized every bit the 41-Eyes of the allied coalition inwards Transitional Islamic State of Afghanistan mentioned past times The Guardian. This grouping grew tardily as well as was called 43-Eyes inwards 2010, when the NATO do Empire Challenge 2010 (EC10) changed its "main participating safety domain" to "an International Security Assistance Forces (ISAF) equivalent 43-Eyes domain".

Probably also because of the steadily increasing issue of coalition partners, shareable data is non marked with REL [..] EYES anymore, but with REL ISAF as well as REL GCTF.

Slide showing the complexity of multi-national data sharing
(full presentation: MultiNational Information Sharing (pdf), 2011)

Conclusion

We receive got seen that designations consisting of a issue of 'Eyes' are used every bit a dissemination marker or treatment education showing alongside which grouping of countries specific armed forces or tidings data may live on shared.

The Guardian as well as the New York Times listed diverse 'Eyes' as well as about other groups inwards a way that suggests a hierarchy of how unopen their human relationship with NSA would be: start the Five Eyes community, followed past times 9-Eyes, 14-Eyes, NACSI, as well as with the 41-Eyes Transitional Islamic State of Afghanistan coalition existence the loosest form of cooperation.

Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 scheme similar this looks attractive, but is at to the lowest degree partially misleading. For surely the Five Eyes are cooperating inwards the closest way, but the other groups receive got dissimilar scopes. NACSI is to a greater extent than similar an advisory working grouping of NATO than an alliance of request tidings agencies, as well as the 41/43-Eyes community is for sharing battlefield data betwixt members of the Transitional Islamic State of Afghanistan coalition.

Regarding the 9-Eyes as well as 14-Eyes communities, it's instantly upwards to journalists who receive got access to the Snowden-documents to render to a greater extent than detailed data most whether they truly stand upwards for to a greater extent than unopen alliances with NSA, or whether they're simply 'working groups' of selected 3rd as well as quaternary political party nations, similar most of the other 'Eyes' communities.

Update #1:
Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 newly disclosed document has shown that all countries of the 14-Eyes are 3rd Party partners of NSA as well as that the actual call of this grouping is SIGINT Seniors Europe (SSEUR). More most this: 14-Eyes are 3rd Party partner forming the SIGINT Seniors Europe

Update #2:
From remarks made on Twitter past times a Dutch journalist who plant on the Snowden-papers, it seems that the 9-Eyes is a grouping for exchanging armed forces signals tidings related to operations inwards Afghanistan.