Iran Mission Center
Agency overview
FormedJune 2017
DissolvedFolding it back into the broader Near East Mission Center in early 2022[1]
Agency executive
Parent departmentUS Central Intelligence Agency

The establishment of the Iran Mission Center was proposed by the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) in June 2017. This new center was established with the mission of collecting and analyzing information related to the country of Iran. The center has the responsibility to gather all the personnel and analysts related to operations about Iran from other parts of the CIA organization.[2][3][4]

Purpose

The establishment of the Iran Mission Center shows that the United States government has placed the order of the Islamic Republic of Iran alongside Russia and North Korea as one of the goals of obtaining information and one of the priorities of the activities of the Central Intelligence Agency of the United States.[2][5]

Robert Eatinger, one of the former officials of the CIA, said in this regard about Michael D'Andrea, the head of Iran Mission Center, “He can run a very aggressive program, but very smartly”.[6][7]

Previously, the President of the United States, Donald Trump, called the Islamic Republic of Iran the number one sponsor of terrorism during his election campaign, and Rex Tillerson, the United States Secretary of State, has also taken a tough stance against Iran during the nuclear deal known as the JCPOA.[8]

Mike Pompeo, former head of the CIA, also said about the Iranian government in November 2016: "We are waiting to withdraw from this disastrous agreement with the largest state that supports terrorism in the world."[9] With the establishment of the Iran Mission Center, the United States government has started the covert anti-terrorist information gathering operations under the leadership of Mike Pompeo to conducting counter-terrorist missions.[3]

History

In the US Central Intelligence Agency, there used to be a room called the Pars Room, where analysts and operations personnel related to Iran gathered in this room, which later became a wider regional department.[2]

Chief

Michael D'Andrea was appointed as the head of the Iran Mission Center by the time Director of the Central Intelligence Agency, Mike Pompeo. Michael D'Andrea previously headed the US drone strike programs.[7][10]

Iran's reaction

So far, Iran has not officially adopted a position in this regard, but Esmaeil Kousari, the former head of the Security Department of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran, said: "The new tactic of the Americans regarding spying on the Islamic Republic of Iran will definitely not reach a result".[11]

See also

References

  1. ^ "'The grim reaper for the enemy': CIA's 'legendary' Iran chief forced to retire". 19 October 2021. Retrieved 17 July 2022.
  2. ^ a b c "سیا مرکزی ویژه برای جاسوسی از ایران تشکیل داد - خبرگزاری فارس" [The CIA established a special center to spy on Iran] (in Persian). Retrieved 17 July 2022.
  3. ^ a b "عملیات ضد تروریسم، عملیات ایران در سازمان سیا - رادیو فردا" [Anti-terrorism operations, Iran's operations in the CIA] (in Persian). 3 June 2017. Retrieved 17 July 2022.
  4. ^ Harris, Shane (2 June 2017). "CIA Creates New Mission Center to Turn Up the Heat on Iran - WSJ". Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 17 July 2022.
  5. ^ "CIA Creates New Body Dedicated To Iran Operations Report - I24NEWS" (in Persian). Retrieved 17 July 2022.
  6. ^ "آیت‌الله مایک، مسئول جدید بخش ایران در سیا/ پیام آن برای تهران چیست؟" [Ayatollah Mike, the new head of the Iran department in CIA / What is its message for Tehran?] (in Persian). Retrieved 17 July 2022.
  7. ^ a b Rosenberg, Matthew; Goldman, Adam (2 June 2017). "C.I.A. Names the 'Dark Prince' to Run Iran Operations, Signaling a Tougher Stance - The New York Times". The New York Times. Retrieved 17 July 2022.
  8. ^ "آیت‌الله مایک مامور عملیات ایران در سازمان سیا شد - العربیه" [Ayatollah Mike became the agent of Iran operations in the CIA] (in Persian). Retrieved 17 July 2022.
  9. ^ "نامزد ترامپ برای ریاست سیا درباره ایران چه می‌گوید؟ - بی‌بی‌سی فارسی" [What does Trump's candidate for CIA directorship say about Iran?]. BBC News فارسی (in Persian). Retrieved 17 July 2022.
  10. ^ ""آیت‌الله مایک" مدیر جدید بخش ایران در سازمان سیا" [Ayatollah Mike, the new director of the Iran department in the CIA] (in Persian). Retrieved 17 July 2022.
  11. ^ "واکنش رئیس پیشین اداره امنیت ستادکل به ایجاد مرکز ویژه جاسوسی آمریکا علیه ایران - خبرگزاری میزان" [The reaction of the former head of the Security Department of the General Staff to the creation of a special US espionage center against Iran] (in Persian). Retrieved 17 July 2022.

External links

Sanctions against Iran
Foreign relations of Iran
Iran in Cold War
Iran topics
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