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Tal Shiar |
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In the Star Trek fictional universe, the Tal Shiar is a Romulan intelligence organization, comparable to the CIA and the KGB.
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The name is an homage to the Tal Shaya, a Vulcan method of execution from the original Star Trek series where the neck is broken with a swift stroke for a quick and merciful death.1
Tal Shiar members wield more authority than military commanders of higher rank, even starship captains. The organization has its own fleet of ships and generally works independently from the military, its frequent competitor.
Tal Shiar operatives have been known to make the enemies of the Romulan Star Empire simply disappear, and are greatly feared.
The Cardassian counterpart to the Tal Shiar is the Obsidian Order. Prior to the Dominion War, the Tal Shiar and the Obsidian Order secretly worked together to launch a pre-emptive strike on the Founder homeworld. The plan was initiated by retired head of the Obsidian Order Enabran Tain, and was supported by Tal Shiar Colonel Lovok, who was later revealed to be a changeling, as a result the entire fleet was destroyed2. Soon after, the Cardassian Union joined the Dominion3 while the Romulan Star Empire entered a pact of neutrality with them4.
Like the Tal Shiar, Federation's Section 31 is a secret intelligence organization, but unlike the Tal Shiar it is not involved in internal Federation matters and does not exist to punish traitors or enforce state policy. Both agencies have had considerable run-ins in the past due to tensions and competition between the two great powers. For instance, Section 31 detected attempts by the Tal Shiar to sway democratic elections on a Federation planet in hopes that the result would favor their interests, and intervened in the electoral process to avert the threat. The Tal Shiar has also been accused of assassinating a high ranking Starfleet admiral, in what operative Luther Sloan declared to be "crossing the line".
The Tal Shiar is currently believed to pose less of a threat to Federation interests since Section 31 successfully infiltrated the organization at its highest levels, recruiting the head of the Tal Shiar, Chairman Koval, as a Federation agent. However, the Romulan tendency towards deviousness make Koval's true loyalties a mystery, or leave open the possibility that he could be a double agent). The status of the Tal Shiar post-Nemesis is unknown.
In the TNG season 6 episode "Face of the Enemy," Counselor Deanna Troi was surgically altered by a Romulan underground organization to impersonate a Tal Shiar officer Major Rakal.
In the Deep Space Nine season 6 episode "In the Pale Moonlight," Elim Garak successfully fools the Tal Shiar into concluding that the assassination of Romulan Senator Vreenak was carried out by the Dominion.
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