Except in both of those cases they're in the hands of powers who don't take too kindly to sharing their technology with the Federation.
True, however:
The incident with Chang happened 117 years ago by STO timeline.
The incident with Shinzon happened 32 years ago by STO timeline.
The Romulan Empire no longer exists, and the only currently recognized Romulan government in the game, is the Romulan Republic. Who has shown tendencies to wanting allies from both sides. Sharing technlogies with one or both allies, would seem to be a natural fit.
I think it's rather short-sighted, not to consider the possibility that "firing while cloaked" may have been developed either during the 117 years since the Chang incident, or the 32 years since the Shinzon incident. After the collapse of the Romulan Empire, the Treaty of Algeron no longer applies, thereby allowing the Federation to finally develop it's own cloaking devices. The tech has existed since at least 2370 (the phase cloak prototype).
The justification for the Intel ships, was to make them "more stealthy", which I've provided clear canon evidence to the contrary. Ships have cloaks, power save "grey" mode, and advanced sensors. All of which already contribute to the "intel collection role", which is the ONLY role these Intel ships are designed for. Which again, goes contrary to canon, in that Federation ships are designed as multi-role ships, capable of operating in a wide variety of capacities. The exception might be the Defiant, and even that ship had it's moments of exploration and scientific missions.
