A poll by current and former intelligence officials named Britain’s MI6 as Europe’s most powerful intelligence service. France’s Directorate General for External Security ranked second, and the Dutch intelligence service, which took third place, was the surprise of this assessment.

According to Vayet, the French weekly L’Express compiled this ranking based on the views of 60 serving and retired officers from 25 intelligence organizations. The evaluation criteria included the ability to recruit sources, penetration into centers of power, carrying out covert operations, sabotage, and cyber capabilities.

MI6 received the highest score for its ability to recruit long-term sources in countries such as Russia, China, the Islamic Republic of Iran, and Turkey. France also placed second due to the global reach of its operations and the combination of human intelligence with technical capabilities.

The Netherlands appeared above expectations due to its active role in European cyber operations. Ukraine was also praised for the rapid transformation of its intelligence services during the war. Yossi Cohen, the former head of Mossad, was present in this poll, but Israel was not officially included in the ranking.