The differences between “covert action” performed by the CIA and “clandestine activities” conducted by the military, as well as the distinct legal frameworks and reporting requirements that govern them, are revisited in a new report from the Congressional Research Service.
See Covert Action and Clandestine Activities of the Intelligence Community: Selected Definitions in Brief, April 25, 2018.
Other new and updated reports from the Congressional Research Service that have not been made publicly available this week include the following.
Army Futures Command, CRS Insight, April 24, 2018
Australia, China, and the Indo-Pacific, CRS Insight, April 23, 2018
The Consumer Product Safety Act: A Legal Analysis, April 24, 2018
Frequently Asked Questions About Prescription Drug Pricing and Policy, updated April 24, 2018
Overview of “Travel Ban” Litigation and Recent Developments, CRS Legal Sidebar, updated April 23, 2018
Can Corporations be Held Liable under the Alien Tort Statute?, CRS Legal Sidebar, April 24, 2018
Cross-Border Data Sharing Under the CLOUD Act, April 23, 2018
Satellite imagery of RAF Lakenheath reveals new construction of a security perimeter around ten protective aircraft shelters in the designated nuclear area, the latest measure in a series of upgrades as the base prepares for the ability to store U.S. nuclear weapons.
It will take consistent leadership and action to navigate the complex dangers in the region and to avoid what many analysts considered to be an increasingly possible outcome, a nuclear conflict in East Asia.
Getting into a shutdown is the easy part, getting out is much harder. Both sides will be looking to pin responsibility on each other, and the court of public opinion will have a major role to play as to who has the most leverage for getting us out.
How the United States responds to China’s nuclear buildup will shape the global nuclear balance for the rest of the century.