The Security Intelligence Agency ('' sr, Безбедносно-информативна агенција / Bezbednosno-informativna agencija''; abbr. ''BIA'') is a national
intelligence agency
An intelligence agency is a government agency responsible for the collection, Intelligence analysis, analysis, and exploitation of information in support of law enforcement, national security, military, public safety, and foreign policy objective ...
of
Serbia
Serbia (, ; Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe, Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Bas ...
. The agency is responsible for collecting, reporting and disseminating
intelligence
Intelligence has been defined in many ways: the capacity for abstraction, logic, understanding, self-awareness, learning, emotional knowledge, reasoning, planning, creativity, critical thinking, and problem-solving. More generally, it can b ...
, and conducting
counter-intelligence
Counterintelligence is an activity aimed at protecting an agency's intelligence program from an opposition's intelligence service. It includes gathering information and conducting activities to prevent espionage, sabotage, assassinations or ot ...
in the interest of Serbia's
national security
National security, or national defence, is the security and defence of a sovereign state, including its citizens, economy, and institutions, which is regarded as a duty of government. Originally conceived as protection against military atta ...
.
History
The Security Intelligence Agency (BIA) was formed on 1 August 2002 as the successor of
State Security Service (SDB), which existed from 1991 to 2002.
Its function is similar to that of the
CIA
The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA ), known informally as the Agency and historically as the Company, is a civilian intelligence agency, foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States, officially tasked with gat ...
in the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
or the
MI6
The Secret Intelligence Service (SIS), commonly known as MI6 ( Military Intelligence, Section 6), is the foreign intelligence service of the United Kingdom, tasked mainly with the covert overseas collection and analysis of human intelligenc ...
in the
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...
.
2017–present
In May 2017,
Bratislav Gašić
Bratislav Gašić ( sr-cyr, Братислав Гашић; born 30 June 1967) is a Serbian politician serving as minister of internal affairs since 2022. A former member of the Serbian Progressive Party (SNS), he served as the minister of defence ...
, former
Minister of Defence
A defence minister or minister of defence is a Cabinet (government), cabinet official position in charge of a ministry of defense, which regulates the armed forces in sovereign states. The role of a defence minister varies considerably from coun ...
and close associate of outgoing
Prime Minister
A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...
and newly elected
President
President most commonly refers to:
*President (corporate title)
*President (education), a leader of a college or university
*President (government title)
President may also refer to:
Automobiles
* Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...
,
Aleksandar Vučić
Aleksandar Vučić ( sr-Cyrl, Александар Вучић, ; born 5 March 1970) is a Serbian politician serving as the president of Serbia since 2017, and as the president of the Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) since 2012.
Vučić served ...
, was appointed as the head of the Security Intelligence Agency. Following his appointment, Gašić suspended his activities in the ruling
Serbian Progressive Party
The Serbian Progressive Party ( sr-cyrl, Српска напредна странка, Srpska napredna stranka, SNS) has been the ruling political party of Serbia since 2012.
Founded by Tomislav Nikolić and Aleksandar Vučić in 2008 as a s ...
(SNS).
In August 2017, an amendments to the ''Law on the Security and Information Agency'', which strengthen the authorities of the agency's director, have arrived in the
National Assembly
In politics, a national assembly is either a unicameral legislature, the lower house of a bicameral legislature, or both houses of a bicameral legislature together. In the English language it generally means "an assembly composed of the repre ...
for adoption. This move was condemned by several officials including the Commissioner for Information of Public Importance
Rodoljub Šabić
Rodoljub Šabić (, born 15 October 1955) is a Serbian lawyer, former Minister of Public Administration and Local Self-Government of Serbia, as well as the First Commissioner for Information of Public Importance of Serbia from 2004 to 2018.
Bi ...
and former
co-Minister of Internal Affairs Božo Prelević.
They have stated that these amendments are unconstitutional and thus way creating a platform for "party's intelligence agency" of SNS, aimed at the opposition and citizens opposed to the ruling regime.
Directors
Source:
; Status
In popular culture
*Serbian TV series ''Državni službenik'' follows the work of one BIA field agent.
*Documentary TV series produced by
Radio Television of Serbia
Radio Television of Serbia ( sr-Cyrl, Радио-телевизија Србије, sr-Lat, Radio-televizija Srbije, italics=yes; abbr. RTS/PTC) is Serbia's public broadcaster. It broadcasts and produces news, drama, and sports programming thro ...
''Tajne službe Srbije'' explores the history and lives of notable people during the history of the Agency.
* Novel ''Služba'' (English: ''Service'') by the former BIA agent Goran Živaljević
See also
*
Military Intelligence Agency
The Military Intelligence Agency ( sr, Војнообавештајна Агенција / Vojnoobaveštajna Agencija, abbr. VOA) is the military intelligence agency of the Ministry of Defence of Serbia. The Military Intelligence Agency is an exp ...
(VOA)
*
Military Security Agency
The Military Security Agency ( sr, Војнобезбедносна агенција / Vojnobezbednosna agencija, abbr. ВБА / VBA) is a Serbian military security and counterintelligence agency under the Ministry of Defence (Serbia), Ministry o ...
(VBA)
*
Intelligence and Reconnaissance Directorate
The Intelligence and Reconnaissance Directorate of the Serbian General Staff ( sr, Управа за обавештајно-извиђачке послове Генералштаба Војске Србије, Uprava za obaveštajno-izviđačke pos ...
*
List of intelligence agencies
This is a list of intelligence agencies by country. It includes only currently operational institutions.
An intelligence agency is a government agency responsible for the collection, analysis, and exploitation of information in support of law e ...
References
External links
Official website
{{National intelligence agencies
2002 establishments in Serbia
Government agencies established in 2002
Counterintelligence agencies
Serbian intelligence agencies
Law enforcement in Serbia
Domestic intelligence agencies