Intelligence Agencies Around the World
CIA (United States).
Founded in 1947 by President Harry Truman. Known to staff as 'the company'. Headquarters at Langley, Virginia, just outside Washington DC. Second centre at Maclean, Virginia. Estimated to employ 25,000 staff, mostly analysts openly engaged on routine work. Covert work is by a small nucleus employed in the Plans Division which runs CIA sections - called 'stations' - in the US embassies. CIA stands for Central Intelligence Agency.
MI6 (Great Britain).
Founded in 1909 and known to staff as 'the firm'. Also called the British Secret Intelligence Service. Based in Westminster Bridge Road, London, and responsible for gathering intelligence outside Britain. MI stamds for Military Intelligence.
MI5 (Great Britain).
Also founded in 1909 and originally called the Special Intelligence Bureau. Know to staff as 'the office'. Based at Curzon Street in London and responsible for internal security and counter-intelligence in Britain.
KGB (Russia).
Known as 'the centre'. The Russian Committee of State Security (KGB) was founded in 1953, the latest in a line of Russian intelligence organisations stretching back to the 16th century. Based in Moscow with headquarters at Dzerzhinsky Square. Employs an estimated 200,000 staff - including 70,000 censors - and is thought to have recruited more than 750,000 non-Russian agents abroad. Eighty per cent of Russian embassy staff around the world are thought to be KGB agents. Responsible for internal security and, with its military counterpart, the GRU, for overseas espionage.
SDECE (France)
The Service de Documentation Exterieure et Contre-Espionage (SDECE) was created in 1958. Headquarters in eastern Paris at Boulevard Mortier. The building is known to staff as 'la piscine' because of a nearby public swimming pool. Responsible for gathering overseas intelligence. Estimated to employ 4,000 people.
MOSSAD (Israel)
Founded in 1950. Based in Tel Aviv, its headquarters is moved to new premises at irregular but frequent intervals for security reasons. Estimated to employ about 1,200 people, it is responsible for overseas espionage. The name Mossad is an abbreviation for Hebrew words meaning Institution for Intelligence and Special Assignments.
  

Note: - This information was written in the mid-80s and with the ending of the cold war, things may have changed such that staffing levels could have reduced and certain functions have become obsolete. Axiompc

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