Soviet intelligence agencies “rarely used the polygraph, but trained some of their officers with a machine stolen in 1965 by a Counterintelligence Corps sergeant, Glen Rohrer, who defected to Czechoslovakia.” That curious factoid is just one of many intriguing nuggets contained in a new “Historical Dictionary of Cold War Counterintelligence” by British intelligence writer Nigel […]
At an unusual press briefing on Monday, U.S. military officials provided the first physical evidence of Iranian arms shipments to Iraqi extremist groups. The display, which the New York Times called “extraordinary,” consisted of explosively formed penetrators, rocket-propelled grenades, mortars, and a shoulder-fired surface-to-air missile reportedly found in Iraq and bearing Iranian markings. Notably, the […]
Though it is still too early to identify concrete results, the pace of Congressional oversight activity on secrecy and intelligence matters has already increased markedly in the new Congress. The House Intelligence Subcommittee on Intelligence Community Management said it “will monitor trends in classification of executive branch material, the costs of over-classification, the practice of […]
Military doctrine on maintaining air superiority against enemy aircraft and missiles is presented in a newly updated publication (pdf) from the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Counterair operations include both offensive counterair (OCA) to destroy enemy aircraft, missiles or other weapons before they can be used, and defensive counterair (DCA) to detect, intercept and destroy enemy […]
The Department of Defense has revised and supplemented its polygraph program to include non-polygraph techniques for detecting deception. A new Pentagon directive (pdf) introduces the term “Credibility Assessment (CA),” which refers to “The multi-disciplinary field of existing as well as potential techniques and procedures to assess truthfulness that relies on physiological reactions and behavioral measures […]
Improvised explosive devices (IEDs) are a major source of U.S. and allied casualties in Iraq. Military doctrine for confronting and defeating the IED threat is set forth in a 2005 U.S. Army field manual (excerpt, pdf). “The proliferation of IEDs on the battlefield in both Iraq and Afghanistan has posed the most pervasive threat facing […]
The transfer of sensitive government communications security (COMSEC) information and equipment to industry is the subject of a newly revised U.S. Navy Instruction (pdf). “Government cryptographic equipment operations will ordinarily be conducted by the Government,” the Instruction states. “However, when there is a valid need and it is clearly in the best interest of the […]
The decline of arms control as an instrument of policy in the Bush Administration is charted in a new report (pdf) from the Congressional Research Service, which surveys the evolution of the field over the last several decades. “The Bush Administration has altered the role of arms control in U.S. national security policy,” the CRS […]
The 2007 intelligence authorization bill was approved without amendment on February 8 by the Senate Armed Services Committee with a recommendation that it be passed into law. The Senate bill would notably require public disclosure of the annual intelligence budget total, an objective long sought by open government advocates and classification reformers. Although there is […]
A new compilation (large pdf) of official records, news releases and other documentation provides a fairly comprehensive account of the Sea-Based X-Band Radar (SBX), an ambitious missile defense program intended to track warheads in flight and to cue ground-based interceptor missiles. The SBX, constructed aboard a modified semi-submersible oil platform, departed Hawaii last month and […]
Noteworthy new publications from the U.S. Army on military doctrine and regulation include these (all pdf). “Intelligence Support to Capability Development,” Army Regulation AR 381-11, 26 January 2007. “Army Field Support Brigade Tactics, Techniques, and Procedures,” Field Manual Interim FMI 4-93.41, February 2007. “Mortuary Affairs Operations,” Field Manual FM 4-20.64, January 2007.
Recent reports of the Congressional Research Service that are not readily available in the public domain include the following (all pdf). “Navy Aegis Cruiser and Destroyer Modernization: Background and Issues for Congress,” February 1, 2007. “FY2008 Appropriations for State and Local Homeland Security,” February 5, 2007. “Military Airlift: C-17 Aircraft Program,” updated January 25, 2007.