On Point with Meghna Chakrabarti What the U.S. loses when our allies stop sharing intelligence
Nov 21, 2025
Dan Lomas, an expert in UK intelligence from the University of Nottingham, and Jan Goldman, a professor at The Citadel with a focus on intelligence ethics, delve into the ramifications of decreased intelligence sharing with U.S. allies. They discuss the UK’s recent halt in intelligence sharing due to legal concerns, the historical roots of U.S.-UK cooperation, and the challenges posed by open-source intelligence. Goldman warns that decreased sharing jeopardizes U.S. national security, illustrating a trust crisis in allied relationships.
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Legal Concerns Can Halt Sharing
- The UK suspended some intelligence sharing after U.S. strikes on alleged drug boats raised legal and human-rights concerns.
- Dan Lomas says the UK views the targeting as potentially illegal and halted information that could be used for lethal targeting.
Allied Politics Now Shapes Sharing
- Several U.S. allies including Colombia, the Netherlands, and others publicly limited intelligence ties in response to perceived human-rights violations.
- This marks a notable shift where politics in the U.S. directly shapes allied intelligence cooperation.
Roots In WWII Codebreaking
- The U.S.–UK intelligence bond began with WWII codebreakers and formalized in postwar pacts like the 1946 Brusa arrangement.
- Dan Lomas traces decades of close operational cooperation that built personal ties across services.