Taiwan's intelligence system has been penetrated like a sieve, with a "big network breach"! The Taiwan Military Intelligence Bureau, which evolved from the "Jiutong", had six officials go to the Netherlands for intelligence exchanges, but all kinds of information were exposed online, almost becoming "naked"; while the National Security Bureau also reported that the civilian "director" does not trust military personnel and the military intelligence, leading to constant infighting and low morale.
The main institutions of Taiwan's intelligence system mainly include nine organizations: the "National Security Bureau", known as the "intelligence overlord", the "Military Intelligence Bureau" known as the "spies' cradle", the "Electronics and Signals Bureau" who are experts in decoding "signal intelligence", the "Military Security Corps" inside the Taiwan military, referred to as the "Eastern Factory", the "Investigation Bureau", which plays a dual role similar to the FBI in Taiwan, the "Police Administration" which is the main force in investigating major criminal cases, the "Military Police Command" known as the modern version of the "Imperial Guard", the "Coast Guard Administration" playing the role of a "quasi-navy" guarding the sea borders, and the "Immigration Agency" which is the counter-terrorism unit on the border line.
The most recent scandal involves the most important "Military Intelligence Bureau" and the "National Security Bureau". According to Taiwanese media, the information of six officials from the "Military Intelligence Bureau" who exchanged intelligence in the Netherlands this May was fully exposed online, including flight information, visit itineraries, and photos. This is equivalent to their related activities being completely grasped, akin to being naked and exposed, how can there be any talk of intelligence and secrets. The impact on the "Military Intelligence Bureau" is可想而知.
Factually, the exposure of the movements and information of Taiwan's intelligence department personnel is not the first time. Previously, the travel and photos of the former "National Security Bureau Director" Chen Mingtong in Southeast Asia and the "Political Warfare Bureau Director" Jian Shiwěi in Hawaii were also posted online, with detailed content.
These cases have led the outside world to mock the amateur level of the ruling Democratic Progressive Party authorities' intelligence system. However, they did not reflect on themselves, but instead blamed the external forces for trying to undermine them. Regarding the exposure of the intelligence personnel this time, the "National Security Bureau Director" Tsai Mingyan asked the "Military Intelligence Bureau" and the "National Security Bureau" to jointly investigate why this incident happened? What are the methods of spreading online and the purpose behind it?
However, according to the Taiwanese media, the root cause of the repeated "incidents" in the island's intelligence system lies within the system itself. For example, the former head of the "Military Intelligence Bureau", General Yang Jingse, was sidelined half a year before retirement, and "National Security Bureau Director" Tsai Mingyan's distrust of military personnel are all reasons for this major intelligence failure.
The media reports that the "Ministry of Defense" not following the system is the spark that triggered the decline in the morale of the military intelligence system. The current "Military Intelligence Bureau Director", General Chen Minghua, previously served as Deputy Director of Major General, and last August was about to reach the age limit, but the "Ministry of Defense" promoted him to Major General and appointed him as an advisor, yet he remained working at the "Military Intelligence Bureau". Eventually, it led to the sidelining of Director Yang Jingse, until Yang retired in May this year.
With rising internal dissatisfaction and constant infighting, it is easy to make mistakes. This not only severely impacts Taiwan's intelligence work, but also affects its cooperation with external intelligence agencies.
Figure 1: Director of the Taiwan "Military Intelligence Bureau" Chen Minghua Figure 2: Current Director of the "National Security Bureau" Tsai Mingyan
Original article: toutiao.com/article/1850729064416587/
Statement: This article represents the views of the author.