Intel cooperation

Ex-CIA Director: US, Russia Intelligence Cooperation Could Thrive

Intelligence cooperation between the United States and Russia could thrive, though it may be limited by poor relations between the two governments, former Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) Director Michael Hayden told Sputnik.

"I am not saying that the political relationship means we won’t have good intelligence cooperation, actually I am saying quite the opposite, that sometimes you have very good cooperation even in troubled political times," Hayden said on Friday.

The Russian government has repeatedly called for cooperation and intelligence sharing with the United States in the fight against the Islamic State. Moscow has also pushed for a broader international coalition to combat terrorism. The United States has publicly rejected deeper cooperation, citing fundamental differences in the two nations’ political objectives in the Middle East.