IRISH SOLDIERS HAVE traveled to the US as part of a strategy to beef up its intelligence services, it has been revealed. 

Once known as J2, the service has changed its name to the Irish Military Intelligence Service (IMIS) and begun recruiting and training new operatives both at officer rank and non-commissioned ranks across the Defence Forces.

Known as spooks in military slang, the operatives are less the spies of the movies and more like highly skilled analysts.

It is understood that a new facility has been built at a military location in Dublin for the service. 

The IMIS role is to provide military and Government with up to date and accurate intelligence – sources have said it also liaises with spy agencies from other countries.

The move comes as part of the Detailed Implementation Plan which followed the Commission on the Defence Forces report which was an examination of shortcomings in defence and recommendations to modernise the military.  

In an article in An Cosantoir which is the Defence Forces internal magazine, it was revealed that the unit’s recruitment drive involves a dedicated “military intelligence school”.

The school became operational in June and is part of a “commitment” to strengthen military intelligence by 2028. 

The strategy is to standardise intelligence gathering skills across the military in the Irish Air Corps, Army and Naval Service. This will also deliver, the report states, specific skills in developing human sources, monitoring of communications systems traffic, open source data and interpretation of surveillance imagery and footage.  

The school will also have a function to maintain contacts with other nations and to find and develop new technology to counter national security threats.

Already a number of courses have been delivered for new intelligence operatives following a Defence Forces wide recruitment competition.

The report states that the training gives operatives “the tactical, operational and analytical skill sets required for the complexity of modern conflict and hybrid threats”.

The students who complete the training will join IMIS and will be based at secure locations across the country away from the Dublin Headquarters. The first of which is due to open in the Irish Naval Service base in Haulbowline.

The report said also that IMIS has travelled abroad to train with other international intelligence services. This was said to be critical for interoperability reasons with other militaries while on foreign deployments such as peacekeeping in Lebanon and being part of the EU Battlegroup concept. 

One of those courses was in America where they attended training in the US Army Intelligence Centre of Excellence in Arizona and in the US Naval facility in San Diego.

Irish Air Corps and Naval personnel are due to attend similar courses in 2026.

The new personnel, including officers and non-commissioned ranks, have begun training other Defence Forces colleagues in some of the skills they’ve learned. 

A report earlier this year by Mr Justice Tony O’Connor, the Judge tasked with overseeing Irish military and police intelligence operations mentioned the reorganisation programme.

In his report the Judge noted that the Irish Defence Forces had asked for more powers to be allowed to monitor social media messaging apps.