When fiction becomes a reality: Great Britain appointed a woman at the top of the MI6 Foreign Secret Service for the first time on Sunday. Blaise Metreweli is planned to take over in the fall. So far she had a function that was also treated in the James Bond series.
Metreweli, currently responsible for technology at the British Secret Service, follows Richard Moore, who has held the position since 2019. This was announced by the government in London. The 47-year-old joined the Secret Intelligence Service (SIS) in 1999, as the MI6 is officially called.
Since then she has mainly worked in operational functions in the middle and in Europe. In her current role as a technology director, she has the internal nickname “Q” all over the inventor of the James Bond films.
“I am proud and I feel honored to be able to lead this service,” said Metreweli, according to the announcement. With the post she takes over one of the most influential positions in the Western Intelligence campaign. In the future it will work under the traditional abbreviation “C” – a practice that goes back to the first boss of the MI6.
With the appointment of Metrepelis, all three have the great British secret services – in addition to the MI6 also the MI5 and the GCHQ responsible for electronic information, already female leaders at the top. Mi5 was first led by a woman for the first time in the nineties, followed by GCHQ in 2023.
Strander: “Excellent leadership”
Prime Minister Keir Strandmer, who is currently at the G7 top in Canada, paid tribute to the decision. Great -Britain is “before threats for rather unknown size,” he said. Metreweli will continue with the “excellent leadership” that is needed for the safety of the country.
According to observers, the biggest challenges for the new MI6 boss are relationships with Russia, China and Iran. British secret services accuse Moscow of sabotage files in Europe to deter supporters of Ukraine. Beijing was classified by Moore 2021 as the “top priority”. The domestic secret service MI5, in turn, blames Iran for countless murder and abduction plans against dissidents in Great Britain.
Metreweli had previously worked in a leading position at the MI5 and studied Anthropology at the University of Cambridge. Their appointment coincides with a piece of film history. About three decades ago, Judi Dench debuted the first female “M” in the James Bond film “Goldeneye” on the cinema screens worldwide.
Source: Krone
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