The morality of espionage
When is is it justifiable?
Earlier this week, Marc commented the arrest of ten individuals for allegedly being involved in a Russian spy ring. The case is somewhat humorous in that the spies did not seem to be snooping for information of any significant worth; but, in any case, the incident raises some interesting ethical questions. For instance, when do the benefits of the intelligence obtained from espionage outweigh the deceptive means used to obtain that information? In their article Ethics and Morality in US Intelligence Arthur Hulnick and Daniel Mattausch explain that one can use Just War theory for determining the circumstances under which spying is permissible.
Just War theory posits there are times when a conflict is morally justified. It painfully seeks to discern the difference between a just and an unjust cause. Simply defined, a just war is a conflict that is fought in either self defense or collective self defense against an armed attack. There is an assumption that the opposing party is in the wrong and that the attack is unjustified.
Applying Just War theory is an imperfect science, but at least it can provide some moral guideposts for distinguishing when covert intelligence operations are defensible.
Or perhaps such careful moral considerations are not required at all. Realism, one of the dominant schools in international relations, posits that power and self-interest drive state behavior in the international realm. Morality cannot play a significant role in international relations, because, with no central authority to enforce rules, states will inevitability ignore ethical considerations when it is to their benefit. If spying is simply an extension of international relations, perhaps a state could argue that preserving their own security requires them to put aside many of the ethical considerations that are applicable under different circumstances.
-Luke
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