The Brennan Center for Justice will sponsor a panel discussion October 5 at the National Press Club in Washington DC on overclassification and “Curbing Needless Secrecy” to accompany the release of a new report on the subject. Participants include former Rep. Christopher Shays, former ISOO director J. William Leonard, former NRO director and chair of […]
Updated below When the Central Intelligence Agency established a Center on Climate Change and National Security in 2009, it drew fierce opposition from congressional Republicans who disputed the need for an intelligence initiative on this topic. But now there is a different, and possibly better, reason to doubt the value of the Center: It has […]
Reports on secrecy-related topics from the Congressional Research Service that are newly updated (but otherwise not new) include these (all pdf). Criminal Prohibitions on the Publication of Classified Defense Information, September 8, 2011 Protection of Classified Information by Congress: Practices and Proposals, August 31, 2011 The State Secrets Privilege: Preventing the Disclosure of Sensitive National […]
The British Cold War stockpile was bigger than previously thought but will be the smallest of the five original nuclear weapons states by the mid-2020s. Click image for bigger version . By Hans M. Kristensen Britain’s disclosure last year of the size of its nuclear weapons stockpile shows, when combined with official information released […]
The number of persons who held security clearances for access to classified information last year exceeded 4.2 million — far more than previously estimated — according to a new intelligence community report to Congress (pdf). The report, which was required by the FY2010 intelligence authorization act, provides the first precise tally of clearances held by […]
On the occasion of its 50th anniversary, the National Reconnaissance Office declassified and released thousands of pages of historical records documenting the development and operation of its GAMBIT and HEXAGON satellite programs. At first glance, many of the documents appear to be interesting and substantial additions to the historical record on the subject. (The associated […]
Click on image to download document. . By Nickolas Roth, Hans M. Kristensen and Stephen Young Note: This is the fourth of four posts analyzing the FY 2012 Stockpile Stewardship and Management Plan, each jointly produced by the Federation of American Scientists and Union of Concerned Scientists. See previous posts: 1, 2, 3. The FY2012 SSMP repeats the […]
The White House reiterated its support for open government in a new report issued Friday afternoon. But curiously, the 33-page document on “The Obama Administration’s Commitment to Open Government” (pdf) downplays or overlooks many of the Administration’s principal achievements in reducing inappropriate secrecy. At the same time, it fails to acknowledge the major defects of […]
The National Reconnaissance Office, the agency that develops and operates U.S. intelligence satellites, is observing the 50th anniversary of its establishment in 1961 with a burst of declassification activity. Tomorrow, September 17, the newly declassified KH-9 HEXAGON satellite will go on public display — for one day only — in the parking lot of the […]
For those who may not have been paying attention, “A small group of developing countries are transforming the global economic landscape,” the Congressional Research Service observed in a report last month. “Led by China, India, and Brazil, these rising economic powers pose varied challenges and opportunities for U.S. economic interests and leadership of the global […]
Click on image to download document. . By Nickolas Roth, Hans M. Kristensen and Stephen Young Note: This is the third of four posts analyzing the FY 2012 Stockpile Stewardship and Management Plan, each jointly produced by the Federation of American Scientists and Union of Concerned Scientists. See previous posts: 1, 2, 4. Since the 1950s, the performance […]
The U.S. military says it is taking a more assertive stance against the proliferation or use of weapons of mass destruction. Newly updated tactical military doctrine “represents a major shift from the former, passive defense nature against nuclear, biological, and chemical weapons to a broader, active, and preventive approach toward a wider range of CBRN […]