Not many people outside policy and government circles know about the Five Eyes, the intelligence-sharing network formed by the US, the UK, Australia, Canada and New Zealand that has existed since World War II. Perhaps that’s what justifies the title of Richard Kerbaj’s “The Secret History of the Five Eyes,” a book that draws largely from public sources, including news articles and interviews with major political figures.
Mr. Kerbaj gives readers a valuable look at the origins and trajectory of the oldest and most successful intelligence network in the world. It’s the one that sustained the US and its allies during World War II and the Cold War, and even after 9/11 and during the War on Terror. As the author shows, it’s an alliance that’s faced its share of internal strife, over the Suez crisis, the Vietnam War and now Donald Trump.