The appointment of diplomat José Pedro Marinho da Costa as director of the Strategic Defense Information Service (SIED) was a direct consequence of loss of one of his “most valuable paintings”.
This is the opinion of external and internal sources who monitor the secret’s activity and concerns Henrique Melo Gomes, who has been Deputy Director since 2012 and that many intelligence officers expected it to rise to the top.
When the name of coastal marine – who was a diplomatic assistant to former Prime Minister José Sócrates – replacing the also diplomat Carlo Piresurgently recruited for the post of Secretary of State for Defense Marco Captain Ferreiraaccused of corruption in the Operation “Perfect Storm””, the general made no secret of his displeasure and warned that he would no longer be number two.
With the world youth day the door, agreed to command SIED alone until the end of the eventbut the delay in taking office of the new director caused his promise to be postponed.
It would have been, some of the above sources assured DN, at the request of Secretary General of the Information System of the Portuguese Republic (SIRP), Graça Mira Gomesto prevent this arm of the secret teams from being unusually left with a leadership deficit for at least three weeks, that the general agreed to stay until Marinho da Costa took office.
Acquisition only in September
As already reported by DN, the government wanted the new director to sit on the new chairman of SIED in August, but his wish was frustrated by the fact that parliament was not available to pass the required deputies during the holiday period. joint hearing of the Committee on Constitutional Affairs and National Defense.
The nomination, on July 31, of Marinho da Costa coincided with theend of legislatureae Secretary of State for Parliamentary Affairs, Ana Catarina Mendes requested “the urgent distribution of documentation putting the very urgent stamp on the document,” said an official cabinet source.
Such “urgency” was interpreted by the chairmen of both committees, Fernando Negrão and Marcos Perestrello, as a request for the hearing to take place later this month. However, this was not possible. “After making every effort to hold the relevant hearing in August, it was decided that according to the rules it would be more appropriate to convene the committee at the start of the new legislature,” said Fernando Negrão, PSD deputy , to DN.
It will be so, after September 3, Marinho da Costa will be checked by the deputies. One of the questions to be asked, according to a deputy who is part of one of these committees admitted to DN, will have to do with his alleged lack of experience in the intelligenceaccording to what is registered in their official curriculum.
“If we think of someone who has the capacity to help prepare for a possible departure of Prime Minister António Costa to a position in Brussels, which has been the subject of so much speculation, this choice even makes sense.as he has experience in European affairs and in the functioning of the committee. As far as information services are concerned, nothing is known yet. On top of that, as already reported, it doesn’t have the current number two, who was the director’s agent,” he noted.
Jose Pedro Marinho da Costa served at the Permanent Representation of Portugal to the European Union (EU) between 2018 and 2022.
He was appointed last August Director of Institutional Affairs at the Directorate-General for European Affairs. The main functions of this service, according to the information on the official website of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, fall within this forecast: “to coordinate the Portuguese participation in meetings of the European Council, the General Affairs Council and the sessions of the different formations of the Council of the EU; coordinating the determination of the national position on issues related to the decision-making process and the institutional system of the EU, including treaty review processes and enlargement processes, as well as on justice and home affairs issues and related to the financial affairs of the EU; monitor the negotiation of EU action in all matters related to the internal market; monitor bilateral relations, including in the economic field, with EU Member States and with other countries and geographies areas within the scope; contributions to EU dissemination and communication policy in Portugal”, are some examples.
Number two has yet to be mentioned
Another military officer may be designated as deputy directorsince there is very close cooperation with the armed forces because of the troops deployed abroad, but Teresa Pimentel’s name has also been mentioned internallydaughter of Ambassador João Pimentel, member of the SIED, currently assigned to the office of Graça Mira Gomes.
The SIED aims to produce and analyze information that, coming from abroad, “contributes to ensuring the national independence and external security of the Portuguese State”.
According to Assessment 2022 by the SIRP Supervisory Boardchaired by the former Interior Minister Constança Urbano de Sousa, SIED “is a relevant partner for the international cooperation of the Portuguese State, namely in specific places where it has in-depth knowledge, promoting analyzes of the internal situations of different countries , alongside topics relevant to national interests”.
CFSIRP recognizes the “need to strengthen human and material resources” (SIED has lost nearly half of its intelligence officers abroad in recent years, the so-called “antennae” at embassies – though he points out that despite this, “it’s a high level of document productionl”, which is “largely” due to the fact that it has human resources that, as a rule, demonstrate high level of knowledge, working methods and deontological awareness”.
Source: DN
