A new U.S. Marine Corps Order establishes Corps policy governing the disclosure of U.S. classified military information and controlled unclassified information to foreign governments. See “Disclosure of Military Information to Foreign Governments and Interests” (pdf), MCO 5510.20A, May 15, 2009.
The Joint Chiefs of Staff issued new doctrinal guidance on combating weapons of mass destruction, including the three pillars of nonproliferation, counterproliferations, and WMD consequence management. See “Combating Weapons of Mass Destruction” (pdf), Joint Publication 3-40, June 10, 2009.
The Merit Systems Protection Board upheld the firing of federal air marshal Robert MacLean for allegedly disclosing “sensitive security information,” even though the information in question had not been marked as “sensitive” at the time, reports Nick Schwellenbach of the Center for Public Integrity. But then the Board published its ruling online even though the document (pdf) was marked “sensitive security information.” No word yet on whether the Board will fire itself. See “Transparency: A Shrill Message for Whistleblowers,” June 25.
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.