Secretariat of Intelligence

"SIDE" redirects here. For other uses, see Side (disambiguation).
Secretariat of Intelligence
of the State
Secretaría de Inteligencia
del Estado

The Secretariat's main building in Buenos Aires
Agency overview
Formed1946
TypeIntelligence
JurisdictionArgentina
HeadquartersBuenos Aires
Agency executive
  • Sergio Neiffert[1], Secretary
Websiteargentina.gob.ar/inteligencia

Secretariat of Intelligence of the State (Spanish: Secretaría de Inteligencia del Estado, mostly known for its acronym SIDE) is the premier intelligence agency of the Argentine Republic and head of its National Intelligence System.

Chaired by the Secretary of State Intelligence who is a special member of the Cabinet of Ministers, the Secretariat of Intelligence was a technical and operational service charged with the collection and production of intelligence and counterintelligence in internal and foreign areas, as well as the analysis and formation of a national intelligence strategy in order to handle state affairs. The Secretariat was charged with the duty of producing a complete intelligence cycle[2] for the government. Structurally, S.I. had the biggest intelligence gathering capabilities in Argentina, as it has numerous delegations within Argentina as well as foreign operational bases and delegations.

Under the law, the Secretariat was subordinated to the Presidency[3] and is ruled by secret decrees and laws.[4] Even though the official acronym was renamed to S.I. as the new intelligence system became active,[5] during most of its history it was called Secretaría de Inteligencia de Estado (Secretariat of State Intelligence, SIDE) and it still is referred to as SIDE by the public.

On January 26, 2015, after the case of the prosecutor Alberto Nisman's death, President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner announced she was proposing legislation that would dissolve the (SI) and opening a new intelligence agency called the Federal Intelligence Agency (AFI).[6] President Javier Milei closed the AFI and restored the SIDE in 2024.[7][8]

  1. ^ De la AFI a la SIDE: los cambios que anunció el Gobierno argentino en el sistema de inteligencia by María De Los Ángeles Raffaele at the CNN (Español), 16 Jul 2024
  2. ^ The Intelligence Cycle, Central Intelligence Agency. URL accessed on April 23, 2006.
  3. ^ Presidency of Argentina. URL accessed on April 23, 2006.
  4. ^ In 2005, the Senate of Argentina abolished secret laws, it is not clear how it has affected the Secretariat.
  5. ^ Article 51 of the Intelligence Reform Law 25.520 renames SIDE (Secretaría de Inteligencia de Estado) to S.I. (Secretaría de Inteligencia) and abolishes secret decree 416/76.
  6. ^ Agencia Federal de Inteligencia, Law 27126 - Modification
  7. ^ Cecilia Devanna (July 16, 2024). "El Gobierno lanzó el decreto que disuelve la AFI, repone la SIDE y la divide en cuatro organismos" [The government released the decree that closes the AFI, restores the SIDE and divides it in four sections] (in Spanish). La Nación. Retrieved July 16, 2024.
  8. ^ El Gobierno disolvió la AFI y anunció cambios en el Sistema de Inteligencia Nacional on Infobae, 15 Jul 2024