A study (pdf) of the news media in 15 Arab countries shows some new signs of vigor and creativity in the Arab press, despite familiar financial constraints and structural changes affecting news organizations. Overall daily circulation and the number of news publications continue to rise. “We are confident that the fundamentals of the media in […]
Noteworthy new volumes of congressional hearings on national security-related topics include the following (all pdf). “War Powers in the 21st Century,” Senate Foreign Relations Committee, April 28, 2009 (published January 2010). “Voice of Veterans of the Afghan War,” Senate Foreign Relations Committee, April 23, 2009 (published February 2010). “Strategic Importance of the Arctic in U.S. […]
The current U.S. strategic war plan is directed against six adversaries. Guess who. . By Hans M. Kristensen While the completion of the Obama administration’s Nuclear Posture Review continues to slide, FAS today published an issue paper on how a decision to reduce the role of nuclear weapons might influence the U.S. strategic war plan. […]
Missile Watch A publication of the FAS Arms Sales Monitoring Project Vol. 3, Issue 1 February 2010 Editor: Matt Schroeder Contributing Author: Matt Buongiorno Graphics: Alexis Paige Contents: Global Overview Afghanistan: No recent discoveries of shoulder-fired, surface-to-air missiles in insurgent arms caches Eritrea: UN slaps arms embargo on major missile proliferator Iraq: Fewer public reports […]
Executive branch agencies have spent more than a billion dollars on declassification of government records in recent years, but the results have been unsatisfactory, requiring a change in declassification policy and procedure. “Between 1997 and 2007 the Federal Government acknowledges spending $1.343 billion on declassification,” reported Michael J. Kurtz, Assistant Archivist at the National Archives, […]
The Justice Department has released its responses to questions (pdf) originally posed by the House Judiciary Committee in 2007 about the Department’s views on the legal framework governing electronic surveillance under the amended Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act. In questions for the record from a September 18, 2007 hearing, House Committee members probed the potential use […]
New reports from the Congressional Research Service that have not been made readily available to the public include the following (all pdf). “Government Interventions in Response to Financial Turmoil,” February 1, 2010. “International Food Aid Programs: Background and Issues,” February 3, 2010. “Architect of the Capitol: Appointment Process and Current Legislation,” February 16, 2010. “Ozone […]
The Quadrennial Deference Review forecasts reduction in regional role of nuclear weapons. By Hans M. Kristensen A little-noticed section of the Quadrennial Defense Review recently published by the Pentagon suggests that that the Obama administration’s forthcoming Nuclear Posture Review will reduce the role of nuclear weapons in regional scenarios. The apparent reduction coincides with a […]
The Obama Administration’s open government initiative might possibly inspire a transformation in the character of government operations along with an expansion of citizen engagement in policy development. But in order to succeed, it needs some thoughtful, creative input from members of the public. All Cabinet level agencies (and a few others) have now prepared Open […]
Among the untold official resources that have been removed from public access in recent years is the Army’s Military Intelligence Professional Bulletin, a quarterly journal on Army intelligence policy and practice. We have made a commitment to restoring access to the Bulletin, including current and past issues. The latest issue (pdf), dated April-June 2009, has […]
It is useful to be reminded from time to time that not every allegation or published report concerning Central Intelligence Agency operations is necessarily true. A front-page story in the Washington Post on January 27 included the remarkable statement that “Both the CIA and the JSOC [Joint Special Operations Command of the Department of Defense] […]
The U.S. Air Force’s 701 Munitions Support Squadron at Kleine Brogel Air Base must protect and handle the nuclear weapons at the base. An astounding statement by a Belgian defense official has pointed an unexpected light on the apparent location of nuclear weapons at the Kleine Brogel Air Base in Belgium. After a […]