Former Justice Department attorney Thomas Tamm, who was one of the early sources for the December 2005 New York Times story on warrantless government surveillance and who is under threat of prosecution for having revealed classified information without authorization, yesterday received the Ridenhour Prize for Truth-Telling. The Ridenhour Prizes, named for the late Ron Ridenhour […]
Noteworthy new reports from the Congressional Research Service, obtained by Secrecy News, include the following (all pdf). “The National Intelligence Council: Issues and Options for Congress,” April 10, 2009. “Pakistan’s Capital Crisis: Implications for U.S. Policy,” updated March 6, 2009. “Direct Overt U.S. Aid and Military Reimbursements to Pakistan, FY2002-FY2009,” updated April 15, 2009. “China-U.S. […]
At a press conference in Mexico City yesterday, President Obama urged the Senate to take up the Inter-American Convention against the Illicit Manufacturing of and Trafficking in Firearms, Ammunition, Explosives, and Other Related Materials, which is often referred to by its Spanish acronym, CIFTA. The Convention aims to curtail the illicit international trade in small arms by […]
If you have followed Russian news media recently, you might have gotten the impression that FAS and NRDC are in charge of U.S. nuclear strike planning and are recommending increasing nuclear targeting of Russia. Of course, neither is true. Yet major Russian news media – and apparently also the chairman of the Russia’s parliament’s international […]
Updated below “The consequences of a prolonged economic downturn–including real estate foreclosures, unemployment, and an inability to obtain credit–could create a fertile recruiting environment for rightwing extremists and even result in confrontations between such groups and government authorities,” according to a new assessment (pdf) from the Department of Homeland Security Office of Intelligence and Analysis. […]
“When… dealing with multiple targets, such as two hostage-takers, [snipers] must coordinate to fire simultaneously,” according to a U.S. Army sniper training manual. “Taking [the targets] out one at a time may allow the second suspect time to harm the hostages.” This was the scenario facing Navy SEALs on the Indian Ocean on April 12. […]
“There seems to be no international architecture capable of coping with and preventing global [financial] crises from erupting,” a newly updated report (pdf) from the Congressional Research Service observes. “The financial space above nations basically is anarchic with no supranational authority with firm oversight, regulatory, and enforcement powers. There are international norms and guidelines, but […]
Last Wednesday, 8 April, the Federation of American Scientists and the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) jointly released FAS Occasional Paper Number 7, From Counterforce to Minimal Deterrence — A New Nuclear Policy on the Path Toward Eliminating Nuclear Weapons. As part of the release, my coauthors, Stan Norris of NRDC and Hans Kristensen of […]
By Ivanka Barzashka and Ivan Oelrich Yesterday, on Iran’s national Nuclear Technology Day, President Ahmadinejad announced the country’s latest nuclear advances, which seem to have become an important source of national pride and international rancor. April 9 marks the day when Iran claimed to have enriched its first batch of uranium in 2006. Yesterday, Ahmadinejad […]
Yes, today, 9 April, is the official Iranian holiday to celebrate all the progress that the Iranians have made toward nuclear self-sufficiency. The Iranian nuclear program is getting lots of news, especially their effort to enrich uranium using centrifuges and today’s inauguration of their new fuel fabrication facility. The fundamental problem with centrifuges is that […]
Click on image for PDF-version of full report. By Hans M. Kristensen The Federation of American Scientists and Natural Resources Defense Council today published a study that calls for fundamental changes in the way the United States military plans for using nuclear weapons. The study From Counterforce to Minimal Deterrence: A New Nuclear Policy on […]
Afghanistan In March, the Sunday Times of London reported on the Taliban’s alleged acquisition of Iranian-supplied SA-14 missiles, which the Afghan insurgent group reportedly wants for a “spectacular” attack on coalition forces. The accusation reportedly came from unidentified “American intelligence sources.” According to the Sunday Times, “…coalition forces only became aware of the presence of […]