Finnish Defence Intelligence Agency applies to jurisdiction Finland
The Finnish Defence Intelligence Agency (Finnish: Puolustusvoimien tiedustelulaitos, PVTIEDL; Swedish: Försvarsmaktens underrättelsetjänst) is the combined signals (SIGINT), geospatial (GEOINT) and imagery intelligence (IMINT) agency of the Finnish Defence Forces. Operational since 2014, its responsibility is to support the defence of Finland through information gathering and analysis as an intelligence agency, organic to the Intelligence Division of Defence Command.
PVTIEDL's SIGINT history can be traced back to the establishment of Finnish radio intelligence in 1927 by Reino Hallamaa, a Defence Command intelligence officer, while its GEOINT history starts from 1812 with the establishment of the Haapaniemi military surveying school and topographical service. The successes of its predecessors are considered instrumental in key battles of the Winter and Continuation War during 1939–1944, such as intelligence at the largest battle in the history of Nordic countries, the Battle of Tali-Ihantala.Organization
Function
The Finnish Defence Intelligence Agency is subordinate to the Intelligence Division of Defence Command and its self-stated tasks include analysing military strategies, gathering geospatial and meteorological intelligence, training Defence Forces and partner staff, such as police or border guard, as well as supporting peacekeeping operations, such as Finnish deployments to the War in Afghanistan, with information services. News reports and other independent sources usually describe it as the main SIGINT, GEOINT and IMINT agency of the Finnish military.It was formed on 1 May 2014 by merging the Finnish Military Intelligence Centre, the Finnish Intelligence Research Establishment and counter-intelligence assets from the Intelligence Division. According to a 2014 interview with Chief of Intelligence, then Brigadier General Harri Ohra-aho, the merger enabled a more comprehensive intelligence overview and enhanced analytical cooperation. The Agency's main elements are situated in Helsinki and Jyväskylä with separate elements around Finland. According to a news report, it employed 150–200 persons and its budget was 15 million euros in 2014.The preceding SIGINT and IMINT arm of the military, the Finnish Intelligence Research Establishment (Finnish: Viestikoelaitos, Swedish: Signalprovanstalten) operated principally as a part of Finnish Air Force Headquarters at Tikkakoski, near Jyväskylä. The facility received its orders from Defence Command and employed 120–140 personnel according to a 2007 news report. It was renamed the Finnish Intelligence Research Centre (Finnish: Viestikoekeskus, Swedish: Signalsprovancentret) when it became a subunit of the Agency.According to a 2017 exposé by the Finnish newspaper Helsingin Sanomat, the Finnish Intelligence Research Centre is responsible for monitoring the Russian Armed Forces by capturing and analysing electromagnetic radiation and maintaining an electronic intelligence mapping that contains information on the Russian military, such as unit types, command and control structures, air defences, readiness plans and missions. During peacetime, the Centre monitors at least the Leningrad Military District while only a fraction of its monitoring is focused on the Western world. The Centre reports its findings first to the Intelligence Division and finally to the President, Prime Minister, Defence Minister and high command of the Defence Forces. The newspaper released examples of the Intelligence Research Centre's analysis topics, such as Russian synthetic-aperture radars from 2005, security-related effects of the Nord Stream 1 pipeline, electronic countermeasures against Buk missiles, and Russian military action during the Russo-Georgian War of 2008.Before the merger, the strategic analysis-focused Finnish Military Intelligence Centre (Finnish: Puolustusvoimien tiedustelukeskus, Swedish: Militära underrättelsecentret) had been located in Helsinki since 2007 and contained a topographical unit specialized in GEOINT as well as an intelligence school. Most information on the Agency or its predecessors is not public per Finnish law. Regarding the Intelligence Research Establishment, virtually every document concerning closer details, such as leadership structure or intelligence processes, were confirmed as secret by a Supreme Administrative Court ruling in 2007—except for budget and employee count.