They require the investment of years of detailed analysis, surveillance, translations, asset development, intelligence collection and other operations.

WSJ: Michelle Van Cleave: Russian Spies Haven't Gone Away

However, he conceded that the legality of such a move was "very questionable" and that the service was a valuable intelligence asset.

BBC: Social media talks about rioting 'constructive'

Countering that, however, is the view that Soca's more intelligence-led approach could offer a solid fit with asset recovery.

BBC: Analysis

None other than the head of Israel's Mossad, its foreign intelligence service, declared this week that America has begun to see Israel more as a burden than an asset.

ECONOMIST: Israel and the world