“There appears to be no statute that generally proscribes the acquisition or publication of diplomatic cables,” according to a newly updated report (pdf) from the Congressional Research Service, “although government employees who disclose such information without proper authority may be subject to prosecution.” But there is a thicket of statutes, most notably including the Espionage […]
After its access to the Wikileaks web site was blocked by the Library of Congress, the Congressional Research Service this week asked Congress for guidance on whether and how it should make use of the leaked records that are being published by Wikileaks, noting that they could “shed important light” on topics of CRS interest. […]
Noteworthy new products from the Congressional Research Service include the following (all pdf). “Securing America’s Borders: The Role of the Intelligence Community,” December 7, 2010. “Hamas: Background and Issues for Congress,” December 2, 2010. “U.S.-Australia Civilian Nuclear Cooperation: Issues for Congress,” December 1, 2010. “Intelligence Estimates: How Useful to Congress?,” November 24, 2010.
The Library of Congress confirmed on Friday that it had blocked access from all Library computers to the Wikileaks web site in order to prevent unauthorized downloading of classified records such as those in the large cache of diplomatic cables that Wikileaks began to publish on November 28. Since the Congressional Research Service is a […]
On December 3, I participated in an interesting, somewhat testy discussion about Wikileaks on the show Democracy Now along with Glenn Greenwald of Salon.com, who is a passionate defender of the project. The ultimate victory of Wikileaks (or something like it) is guaranteed, Mr. Greenwald suggested, so any criticism of it is basically irrelevant. “We […]
The ongoing release of U.S. diplomatic communications by the Wikileaks organization is “embarrassing” and “awkward,” said Secretary of Defense Robert M. Gates yesterday, but its consequences for U.S. foreign policy are likely to be “fairly modest.” “I’ve heard the impact of these releases on our foreign policy described as a meltdown, as a game-changer, and […]
As confidential U.S. diplomatic documents continue to enter the public domain, it is worth remembering that not everything that is written down in a government document, even (or especially) in a classified document, is necessarily true. “Truth telling” involves a bit more than trafficking in official records. Any historian or archival researcher knows that. So […]
Nuclear physicist Sam Cohen died Sunday at age 89, the Washington Post reported in an obituary today. Cohen, a veteran of the Manhattan Project, conceived, designed and advocated development of the neutron bomb, a high-radiation anti-personnel weapon. He cordially despised the Federation of American Scientists, which didn’t stop him from writing and calling us regularly […]
Noteworthy new documents from the Congressional Research Service that have not been made readily available to the public include the following (all pdf). “Changes in Airport Passenger Screening Technologies and Procedures: Frequently Asked Questions,” November 23, 2010. “North Korea’s 2009 Nuclear Test: Containment, Monitoring, Implications,” November 24, 2010. “Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty: Background and Current Developments,” […]
The massive disclosure of a quarter million diplomatic records by Wikileaks this weekend underscores the precarious state of the U.S. national security classification system. The Wikileaks project seems to be, more than anything else, an assault on secrecy. If Wikileaks were most concerned about whistleblowing, it would focus on revealing corruption. If it were concerned […]
Updated below U.S. efforts to promote the rule of law in Afghanistan are expanding and accelerating. Nearly a billion dollars has been spent in the past decade to strengthen Afghanistan’s legal infrastructure, rising from $7 million in FY2002 to an estimated $411 million in FY2010. In July 2010, a new Ambassador-rank position was created to […]
Noteworthy new reports from the Congressional Research Service include the following (all pdf). “Countering Terrorism in East Africa: The U.S. Response,” November 3, 2010. “Latin America: Terrorism Issues,” October 26, 2010. “U.S.-South Korea Relations,” November 3, 2010.