Milei moves forward with a deep SIDE reform to organize and make the intelligence system more transparent

The National Government moved forward with a deep restructuring of the Argentine intelligence system through DNU 941/2025, signed by President Javier Milei. The objective of this renewal is to organize, professionalize, and make transparent an area that for decades operated with discretion, overlapping functions, and limited institutional oversight.

The reform of the State Intelligence Secretariat (SIDE) introduces substantial changes to the National Intelligence Law and is part of a broader policy of ordering the State. The aim is to ensure that public resources serve the interests of Argentines and not opaque structures.

A system focused on its essential mission

The Executive Branch explained that the central function of any intelligence system is the production of strategic information to assist democratically elected authorities. In that vein, the official statement keeps that the objective of the reform is "to narrow, define, and clarify with precision both the structure and the powers of the National Intelligence System," adapting it to the challenges of the 21st century.

The decree reduces powers in order to focus SIDE exclusively on intelligence and counterintelligence tasks. This makes clear that the agency doesn't have police, judicial, or domestic security functions. This way, roles historically assigned without institutional support are eliminated, which contributed to disorder and lack of oversight.

Clear counterintelligence without political use

One of the central pillars of the reform is the redefinition of counterintelligence. The National Security Agency is renamed National Counterintelligence Agency. This way, it is limited exclusively to the protection of the State against espionage, sabotage, or interference by external actors.

According to the official statement, counterintelligence is defined "in a clear and exhaustive manner as the function intended to protect the Argentine State against intelligence, espionage, or interference actions by external agents." This puts an end to past practices in which State resources were used for internal political persecution or domestic espionage.

Streamlining structures and eliminating overlaps

The decree also provides for the elimination of the National Directorate of Strategic Military Intelligence, whose functions overlapped with those of other agencies. From now on, the production of strategic military intelligence will be concentrated in the Joint Chiefs of Staff, consolidating a more efficient and coherent defense framework.

In parallel, a process of rationalization and downsizing of the system is moving forward. Unnecessary structures and vague missions that only contributed to the inefficient use of public resources are eliminated.

Another relevant change is the separation between cyber intelligence and cybersecurity. SIDE will retain only cyber intelligence tasks, while the protection of critical infrastructure and the State's digital systems will fall under the purview of the Secretariat of Innovation, Science, and Technology.

The criterion adopted is specialization: each State agency must focus on the functions for which it was designed, avoiding duplications and gray areas.

More oversight and institutional transparency

The reform creates new coordination bodies, such as the National Intelligence Community and the National Information Community. In addition, it establishes mandatory mechanisms for registration, traceability, and oversight of information flows.

Furthermore, internal oversight is strengthened through the creation of the General Intelligence Inspectorate, with auditing, inspection, and control functions over legality, performance, and use of resources. The objective is to eliminate discretion and ensure that the system operates within clear legal boundaries.

Taken together, the restructuring of SIDE reaffirms Milei's Government's course toward a limited, professional, and transparent State. Decades of opacity and political use of intelligence are left behind, and a system at the service of the Republic, freedom, and citizens is consolidated.