Office for Foreign Relations and Information 

Carrying out a policy and decision-making in general require adequate information. The people who make decisions can make right conclusions and decisions only if they are well informed. The inalienable right and duty of the state is to obtain, evaluate and use information important for national security, defence, protection of its constitutional system and for important national (political, security, economic) interests. The opponent or the enemy of the state - whatever it is: a foreign power, a terrorist, a criminal, a subversive organization etc. - hides their acting (intentions, plans, information) which contradicts the interests of the state. Hence, to obtain this undisclosed information requires other than usual information sources and tools such as all agendas and funds of the state bodies, including diplomacy, the activity of regulatory bodies and bodies involved in criminal proceedings (especially the police), the use of research and special institutions or tools of the open society, including free media. The right and duty of the state is to protect its own information, its protected values and infrastructures. Hence states establish specific tools for obtaining and protection of classified information, which are often not revealed to the public. These tools are organizations called intelligence services. They are one of the attributes of sovereignty of a country.

Source: Petr Zeman - lectures, trainings and public speeches