Strategic Intelligence and Decision-Making in the National Security Domain

The role of intelligence in decision-making refers back to several thousands ago given the importance of the issue. The relationship between intelligence and command in battle fields has at least been recorded five centuries before Christ in the literature on war and strategy; however strategic intelligence and decision-making on national security areas refers to around four to five decades ago. The significance of the issue in strategic circles is now clear and undeniable. The author has tried in this paper to describe the concept of intelligence, strategic intelligence and the process of decision-making in national security arena, and to explain the role of strategic intelligence and its interaction with such a process. Since these discussions are almost unprecedented in Iran, the author tries to reconsider and redefine the firm and close relationship between these elements and to explore their mutual impact on each other as well. By explaining these discussions, the author shows how open and secret intelligence systems in countries influence political and strategic decision-making and by which methods they may be overshadowed by strategic intelligence.