The focus of my presentation is the impact of the new security context brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic on the efficacy of the democratic oversight of the Romanian intelligence sector. The paper acknowledges that the democratic oversight of intelligence - an opaque sector that is traditionally regarded as "exceptional" - has always been a difficult task for legislators and politicians. The recent global and regional crises have only increased its difficulty and are putting to the test the oversight mechanisms in place.
Using the experience and lessons that can be learned from the case of Romania, I firstly describe the new challenges that the intelligence apparatus had to adapt to after 2020; secondly, I analyse Romania’s response to the pandemic and the mandate they assigned to intelligence agencies. I then assess the impact of the new context on the functioning of oversight mechanisms – both formal (parliamentary oversight and executive hierarchical control) and informal (mass-media and civil society). I build upon literature in intelligence studies and civil-military relations and I conclude that the pandemic context constituted a test on the resilience of democratic oversight mechanisms.
The analysis seems to suggest that the safeguards in place are not adequate in dealing with exceptional situations that warrant the extension of the intelligence agencies’ mandate and that the complexity of the current threat landscape may lead to backslides in democratic standards, the politicization of the intelligence sector and the diminishing of accountability for the intelligence activities.