The interagency Nuclear Weapons Council (NWC) has formally decided to endorse the proposed Reliable Replacement Warhead (RRW) concept as the basis of the future U.S. nuclear arsenal, a new report (pdf) from the Congressional Research Service revealed today. In November 2006, “the NWC determined that the RRW is to be adopted as the strategy for […]
Some more noteworthy new reports from the Congressional Research Service that are not readily available in the public domain include these (all pdf). “Freedom of Information Act Amendments: 110th Congress,” updated February 1, 2007. “Critical Infrastructures: Background, Policy and Implementation,” updated January 8, 2007. “Earthquakes: Risk, Monitoring, Notification, and Research,” February 2, 2007.
It is the policy of the United States to develop medical countermeasures that could be used in response to an attack involving chemical, biological, radiological or nuclear weapons, according to a new Homeland Security Presidential Directive (HSPD-18) issued by President Bush on Medical Countermeasures Against Weapons of Mass Destruction. A bill introduced in the House […]
In an extraordinary internal challenge to the unruly Office of the Vice President (OVP), the Information Security Oversight Office (ISOO) has formally petitioned the Attorney General to direct the OVP to comply with a requirement that executive branch organizations disclose statistics on their classification and declassification activity to ISOO. For the last three years, Vice […]
A U.S. Army manual on psychological operations (pdf) elaborates upon the role of PSYOP in military activities. “The employment of any element of national power, particularly the military element, has always had a psychological dimension. Foreign perceptions of U.S. military capabilities are fundamental to strategic deterrence. The effectiveness of deterrence hinges on U.S. ability to […]
Secrecy News was sad to learn that Lee S. Strickland, a former Central Intelligence Agency official, died on January 23. We first encountered him perhaps 15 years ago when he was the head of the CIA Freedom of Information office, where he used to reliably deny our FOIA requests. Over the years he seemed to […]
China’s entire submarine fleet conducted only two patrols in 2006, according to information declassified by the U.S. Navy and obtained by the Federation of American Scientists under the Freedom of Information Act. The low patrol rate follows a drop from an all-time high of only six patrols in 2000 to none in 2005. China’s single […]
The President’s foreign aid budget request for FY2008 contains an unexpected and laudable surprise: a five-fold increase in funding for the State Department’s Small Arms/Light Weapons Destruction initiaitive. If approved by Congress, the additional funding will bolster US efforts to stem the illicit trade in deadly light weapons.
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) “continues to receive information on terrorist threats to the U.S. aviation industry and to the Western aviation industry worldwide,” according to a May 2006 DHS threat assessment (pdf) that was partially released last week. Yet “an independent assault at the Los Angeles International Airport in July 2002 that left […]
The U.S. Navy has issued updated instructions on the use of nicknames to refer to Navy activities, events and other information. “A nickname is a combination of two separate unclassified words, assigned an unclassified meaning that is employed for unclassified, administrative, morale, or public information purposes. Nicknames may be assigned to actual, real-world events, projects, […]
Noncombatant evacuation operations are addressed in a new doctrinal publication (pdf) from the Joint Chiefs of Staff. “Noncombatant evacuation operations (NEOs) are conducted to assist the Department of State (DOS) in evacuating US citizens, Department of Defense (DOD) civilian personnel, and designated host nation (HN) and third country nationals whose lives are in danger from […]
Noteworthy new reports of the Congressional Research Service include the following (all pdf). “U.S. Strategic and Defense Relationships in the Asia-Pacific Region,” January 22, 2007. “Kinetic Energy Kill for Ballistic Missile Defense: A Status Overview,” updated January 5, 2007. “Afghan Refugees: Current Status and Future Prospects,” January 26, 2007. “Chemical Facility Security: Regulation and Issues […]