Editing Romanian Intelligence Service (section)

===Previous intelligence services in Romania===
{{Main article|Siguranța|Securitate}}
In 1865, the [[Chief of the Romanian General Staff|Romanian General Staff]] (inspired by the French system) created the 2nd Section (''Secția a II-a'') to gather and analyze [[military intelligence]].<ref name="sri.ro">{{cite web|url=https://www.sri.ro/momente-cheie|title=Momente cheie - Serviciul Român de Informații|website=www.sri.ro|access-date=23 February 2018}}</ref> This marked a  growing interest in centralising intelligence efforts spurring the creation of the General Safety Bureau in 1892 within the Ministry of the Interior with responsibilities pertaining to the safety of the state. However, despite ambitions, the various government entities and associated municipal governance structures were not set up in a way which allowed for national, collective intelligence services. Prior to 1905, Romania’s regional police forces were dependent on the local politics and had no strategic continuity. The [[1907 Romanian peasants' revolt|1907 Peasants' Revolt]] highlighted critical gaps in oversight, specifically in the ability to ascertain with certainty the motives behind the revolt and whether any foreign elements were involved in the events.

In March 1908, the Bureau became the Police and General Safety Directorate. Among its responsibilities of leading judicial and law enforcement matters nationally, it would also occupy itself with gathering intelligence pertaining to events and offences with a political footprint. In a bid to correct the gaps of the past, police infrastructure was reorganised with regional brigades in each municipal capital. Funded centrally and with a focus on gathering information pertaining to the security of state borders, a key distinguishing feature was the complete independence from regional politics thereby ensuring a stable and organised entity. The intelligence gathering responsibilities were shared with the Prefect’s Office of the Capital City Police and General Inspectorate of the Gendarmerie. In parallel with law enforcement developments, select intelligence and counter-intelligence units were being created by the Romanian Army with a remit of both at home and abroad.

Between 1914 and 1918 Romania faced unrest on several fronts including corruption, espionage and a unification war. The impact of recent reorganisation efforts should not be overlooked. The establishment of central entities for gathering, processing and sharing information critical to national security allowed the Romanian State to maintain its integrity in the face of more powerful states in central Europe and uncover German spies, some in positions of power within government and armed forces.

As of 1918, the State of Romania included 3 new provinces which brought their own challenges to national security considerations. New ethnic minority groups, now under the geographic territory of Romania, formed political and revolutionary groups causing further unrest. Simultaneously, there were significant political and social issues emerging in the aftermath of the first world war which would continue to overshadow national security decisions for decades to come. For this reason, national security became wholly focused on domestic issues and lost sight of foreign threats even though, it can be argued that espionage threats were increasing across Europe.

It is critical at this point to highlight that the geographic location of Romania was considered strategically advantageous for political, economic and military interests and coveted for its rich natural resources. For example, German and Anglo competing (and often in conflict) interests in expansion have often played out in Romanian territory. This hidden war gave rise to many espionage operations by France and the United Kingdom. Various publications in the years that followed which boasted of successful agents and their missions prompted the start of a new department of intelligence.

By 1925, after several years of efforts, [[Mihail Moruzov]] managed to convince the General Staff about the necessity of a [[secret service]] that uses civilian employees to gather intelligence of interest to the [[Romanian Land Forces|Romanian Army]].<ref name="sri.ro" /> Information sharing and collaboration across both intelligence and counterintelligence strengthened and included areas of focus such as politics, economy, minorities and counterespionage. The new service would also develop areas of surveillance, in particular of ethnic minority communities.

Moruzov's leadership of the Secret Service occurred during a time of turbulent socio-political developments, including the rise of the Iron Guard, the threat of Communism and the uncertain role of the Monarchy. His activities, which often included gathering compromising information about key political figures, drew the attention of Ion Antonescu who would become Head of State following the abdication and exile of King Carol II. In September 1940, Moruzov was arrested and put on trial. 

Learning from the failings of the Secret Service under Moruzov, Antonescu relaunched the service in 1940 as the Special Service of Intelligence (''Serviciul Special de Informații'') with [[Eugen Cristescu]] as official director. <ref name="sri.ro" /> The new service was under the direct authority of the Head of State thereby severing the influence of the army element however they would continue to collaborate on a more equal footing; it would also be funded by the Ministry of Defence and as such spending would be monitored accordingly. As World War II loomed, the activities of the S.S.I. began to attract negative attention from other elements of government, particularly the Ministry of Justice. 

Though the political independence enjoyed during Moruzov was not wielded in a way which boosted national security, the alternative placed the service under the direct control of the government and would later be used against those who opposed government directives. Antonescu, in assuming power in September 1940 also allowed the Legionary Movement and by extension the Iron Guard access to the highest echelons of power. Further collaboration with German entities such as the Abwehr further galvanised the movement and those who opposed the regime were at increased risk.

Similarly, through the [[Socialist Republic of Romania|communist period]] (1947 to 1989), the service was used as an oppressive instrument against the anti-communists and people who opposed the government's official policies. The ''[[Securitate]]'' ("Security") was the [[political police]] that was involved in repressing [[Dissent in Romania under Nicolae Ceaușescu|dissent]]. During the [[Romanian Revolution]] of December 1989, soon after taking power, [[Ion Iliescu]] signed the decree which integrated the Securitate into the [[Ministry of National Defence (Romania)|Ministry of Defense]], thus bringing it under his control.<ref>[[Monitorul Oficial]], [http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Monitorul_Oficial_al_României._Partea_I_1989-12-25,_nr._2.pdf Partea I nr. 2] December 25, 1989</ref>

[[Iulian Vlad]], the head of the Securitate, together with some of his deputies, were arrested on December 31, 1989; Iliescu named [[Gelu Voican Voiculescu]] as the new head of the Securitate.<ref name="Mostenitorii">{{cite news |title=Moștenitorii Securității - în primii ani de democrație |author=Marius Oprea |author-link=Marius Oprea |url=http://www.dntb.ro/sfera/arhiva/52/florian.htm |newspaper=Sfera |access-date=16 April 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140313000943/http://www.dntb.ro/sfera/arhiva/52/florian.htm |archive-date=13 March 2014 |url-status=dead }}</ref> Voiculescu assured the Securitate agents that he does not intent to wage a war against individual Securitate officers and, by mid-January 1990, the Securitate officers continued their activity in their old headquarters.<ref name="Mostenitorii"/> The press was informed (but not allowed to verify) that the equipment for tapping phones had been decommissioned.