Summary

Rear Admiral Tim Woods (Biography) joins Andrew (Twitter; LinkedIn) to discuss his role as Britain’s Defence Attaché to the United States. Tim previously served as the British Defence Attaché in Kyiv, Ukraine. 

What You’ll Learn

Intelligence

• What does a Defense Attaché do


• How intelligence impacts military strategy


• Admiral Woods’ experience of the 2021 Russian invasion of Ukraine


• What it’s like to constantly be surveilled

Reflections

• The power of relationships and connections 


• Sacrificing personal privacy for national security

And much, much more …

Resources 

SURFACE SKIM

SpyCasts

• 
  Spies: The Epic Intelligence War Between East vs. West with Calder Walton (2023)


• 
  Ukraine & the Alliance with NATO’s Assistant Secretary General for Intelligence David Cattler (2023) 


• 
  Ukraine & Intelligence: One Year On with Shane Harris (2023)

Beginner Resources

• 
  What Is The Five Eyes Alliance?, K. Haan, Forbes (2023) [Short article]


• 
  Russian invasion of Ukraine: A visual timeline of the war, ABC News, YouTube (2023) [6 min. video]


• 
  What is a defence attaché?, Geneva Centre for the Democratic Control of Armed Forces (2007) [Backgrounder]

DEEPER DIVE

Books

• 
  The Secret History of the Five Eyes: The untold story of the shadowy international spy network, R. Kerbaj (Blink Publishing, 2022)


• 
  The Gates of Europe: A History of Ukraine, S. Plokhy (Basic Books, 2017)


• 
  Defense of the West, S. Sloan (Manchester University Press, 2016)

Primary Sources 

• 
  UK defence policy and the role of the armed forces (2023)


• 
  Integrated Review Refresh 2023: Responding to a more contested and volatile world (2023)


• 
  Defence Command Paper 2023: Defence’s response to a more contested and volatile world (2023)


• 
  Statement on the Salisbury & Amesbury Investigation by Neil Basu (2018) 


• 
  Strategic Defence and Security Review: First Annual Report (2010)


• 
  Act of Declaration of Independence of Ukraine (1991) 

Wildcard Resource

• 
  Midway (1976) 


• A (dramatic) retelling of the 1942 Battle of Midway, one of the most critical naval battles of the Second World War – A battle that perfectly exhibits the importance of intelligence in a time of war. 

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