Ball,
Desmond J. Pine Gap: Australia and the U.S. Geostationary Signals Intelligence Satellite Program. Canberra: Strategic and Defence Studies Centre, 1988. Sydney: Allen & Unwin, 1988.
Cain, I&NS 6.1, says that Pine Gap "brings up to date the functions and purpose" of what Ball "declares to be the CIA's most important COMINT spy base outside the USA."
[Australia/Gen; Liaison]
Ball,
Desmond J. "Signals Intelligence in India." Intelligence and
National Security 10, no. 3 (Jul. 1995): 377-407.
Ball notes that the British began signals intelligence operations in India early this century. He reviews briefly British activities in India, the future Pakistan, and Ceylon in World War II.
"Cooperation with the US with respect to some specific but very important Sigint activities was established in the early 1960s, after the war with China in October-November 1962. In 1962-63 the CIA funded the construction of a base at Charbatia ... which was used for airborne intelligence ... operations against China.... In early 1964 India agreed to a US proposal to install, in the Himalayas, remotely-operated telemetry intelligence (Telint) devices.... In 1969 the United States established a large Sigint station in north India" to replace the station at Peshawar closed in July 1969 by the Pakistanis.
"In the early 1970s the Soviet Union established two Sigint stations in Punjab."
Ball reviews the organizational structure of the Indian signals intelligence establishment. He believes that the performance of Indian Sigint "at the strategic level has been consistently poor." On the other hand, tactical-level signals intelligence "has been fairly good.... The principal reason for the relatively poor performance of the Indian Sigint establishment ... is the lack of any comprehensive Sigint policy and coordination machinery." He also regards Indian communications security (Comsec) as a "significant weak link" in signals intelligence activities. Ball concludes that "overall, the cost-effectiveness of India's Sigint activities must be reckoned to be fairly low."
[OtherCountries/India][c]
Ball,
Desmond J. Signals Intelligence in the Post-Cold War Era: Developments in the Asia-Pacific Region. Singapore: Institute of Southeast Asian Studies, 1993.
According to Kruh, Cryptologia 20.3, this book "details recent developments in global and Asian-Pacific regional SIGINT capabilities and operations." In the Asia-Pacific region, "there has been a significant expansion of SIGINT capabilities and operations over the past decade and it is expected to continue over the foreseeable future."
[Australia; NSA/Sigint]
Ball,
Desmond J. Signals Intelligence (SIGINT) in South Asia: India, Pakistan,
Sri Lanka (Ceylon). Canberra: Strategic and Defence Studies Centre,
1996.
Kruh, Cryptologia 21.1, finds that this "slim volume ... hold[s] a voluminous amount of information on signals intelligence in South Asia." The author covers intelligence establishments, organizational aspects, facilities, capabilities, and efficiency and effectiveness.
[OtherCountries/India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka]
Ball,
Desmond J. Signals Intelligence (SIGINT) in South Korea. Canberra:
Strategic and Defence Studies Centre, 1995.
According to Kruh, Cryptologia 20.4, Ball's "monograph describes the history of SIGINT activity in South Korea since 1950, the principal US SIGINT ground stations, deployments and operations, and the advanced battlefield SIGINT systems and capabilities currently operational in South Korea." A review by Cain, I&NS 11.1, is of no value in evaluating this work.
[OtherCountries/SKorea]
Ball,
Desmond J. "Signals Intelligence in Taiwan." Jane's Intelligence
Review, Nov. 1995, 506-510.
[OtherCountries/Taiwan]
Ball, Desmond J. "Silent Witness: Australian Intelligence and East Timor." Pacific Review 114, no. 1 (2001): 35-62.
[Australia/00s]
Ball,
Desmond J. A Suitable Piece of Real Estate: American Intelligence in Australia. Sydney: Hale & Iremonger, 1980.
The focus here is on the U.S. satellite ground stations in Australia.
[Australia; Liaison]
Ball, Desmond,
and David Horner. Breaking the Codes: Australia's KGB Spy Network, 1944-1950. St. Leonards, Australia: Allen & Unwin, 1998.
Concord, MA: Paul & Co., 1998.
According to Peake, NWCR 53.3 and Intelligencer 11.2, this work "is primarily concerned with ten Australians who spied for Soviet intelligence.... The book also offers a short history of Australian intelligence, its World War II role (including naval intelligence and naval ULTRA), and its close links to Britain's Security Service (MI 5).... The book is well written and impressively documented with primary sources."
Kruh, Cryptologia 24.2, notes that the authors "cover a wide range of information including the success of the US cryptanalytic attack on VENONA." For Unsinger, IJI&C 14.1, this "is an excellent review" of the operations of the Comintern, KGB, and GRU in Australia from late in World War II to the beginning of the Korean War. Breaking the Codes provides "insight into Australia's reaction to Soviet intelligence operations" and "describes Australia's security establishment and some of the personalities who shaped its postwar development."
[Australia/Gen; SpyCases/U.S./Venona]
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