A status report on the Navy’s development of the Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) as of late last year is given in a Selected Acquisition Report (pdf) that was sent to Congress in April. The word “littoral” means near the shore. The LCS is intended to counter small boat threats, mine laying vessels and coastal submarine […]
Policy issues surrounding the use of geospatial information are examined in two new reports from the Congressional Research Service. “Geospatial information is data referenced to a place–a set of geographic coordinates–which can often be gathered, manipulated, and displayed in real time. A Geographic Information System (GIS) is a computer data system capable of capturing, storing, […]
Two of China’s new Jin-class nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarines were photographed at Xiaopingdao in late-March 2011, possibly in preparation for missile test launches. (Click for larger picture). . By Hans M. Kristensen Two of China’s new Jin-class nuclear ballistic missile submarines have sailed to the Xiaopingdao naval base near Dalian, a naval base used to […]
You won’t be able to count SS-18s in the New START aggregate date. . By Hans M. Kristensen Russia and the United States have released the first Fact Sheet with aggregate numbers for the strategic offensive nuclear forces counted under the New START treaty. It shows that Russia has already dropped below the New START […]
The precise number of persons who hold security clearances for access to classified information was supposed to be reported to Congress by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence for the first time in February 2011. But that total number, which is believed to be around 2.5 million, remains elusive and it still has […]
The Chief Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court has named two new federal district court judges to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court to replace two others whose term had expired. The FIS Court is responsible for reviewing government applications for electronic surveillance and physical search under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act. The new appointments are Judge Jennifer B. Coffman […]
Update (6/23/11): On June 13, the Pentagon Papers were published in their entirety. The last eleven words that remained classified were declassified prior to publication. The Pentagon Papers that were leaked by Daniel Ellsberg four decades ago have been formally declassified and will be released in their entirety next month — except for eleven words […]
The Congressional Research Service has just updated its Congressional Oversight Manual, which details the considerable legal authorities, legislative instruments and investigative tools for conducting oversight that members of Congress and congressional committees have at their disposal. See “Congressional Oversight Manual” (pdf), May 19, 2011. Other new or newly updated CRS reports of interest include the […]
Updated below An amendment offered on May 24 by Sen. Ron Wyden would have challenged the Administration’s reliance on what he called “secret law” and required the Attorney General to explain the legal basis for its intelligence collection activities under the USA PATRIOT Act. But that and other proposed amendments to the PATRIOT Act have […]
A new overview of relations between Pakistan and the United States in light of recent events was prepared by the Congressional Research Service. See “Pakistan-U.S. Relations: A Summary,” May 16, 2011. Some other new CRS reports include the following (all pdf). “Interagency Collaborative Arrangements and Activities: Types, Rationales, Considerations,” May 9, 2011. “Insourcing Functions Performed […]
Instead of imposing mandatory new legal restrictions on publication of sensitive information, the nation would be better off if scientists, journalists and others adopted an ethic of self-restraint in what they choose to publish, a provocative new paper suggests. “An abundance of information that could be useful to terrorists is available in the open literature,” […]
A new counterintelligence directive (pdf) requires all Department of Defense personnel to report a wide range of suspicious activities and behavior to counterintelligence officials. The directive effectively deputizes millions of military and civilian employees of the Department as counterintelligence agents or informants. If they do not report any of the specified activities, they themselves could […]