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The British Secret Service in Neutral Switzerland

The British Secret Service in Neutral Switzerland

An Unfinished Debate on NATO's Cold War Stay behind Armies

Autor(en): Daniele Ganser
Journaltitel: Intelligence and National Security
Reviewed:  
Band: 20
Ausgabe: 4
Seiten: 553-580
Verlag(e): Routledge
Publikationsjahr: 2005

In 1990, the existence of a secret anti-Communist stay-behind army in Italy, codenamed 'Gladio' and linked to NATO, was revealed. Subsequently, similar stay-behind armies were discovered in all NATO countries in Western Europe. Based on parliamentary and governmental reports, oral history, and investigative journalism, the essay argues that neutral Switzerland also operated a stay-behind army. It explores the role of the British secret service and the reactions of the British and the Swiss governments to the discovery of the network and investigates whether the Swiss stay-behind army, despite Swiss neutrality, was integrated into the International NATO stay-behind network.