A new publication (pdf) from the Joint Chiefs of Staff defines military doctrine regarding “peace operations.” Peace operations utilize “all instruments of national power with military missions to contain conflict, redress the peace, and shape the environment to support reconciliation and rebuilding and facilitate the transition to legitimate governance. Peace operations include peacekeeping, peace enforcement, […]
Much of what is publicly known regarding the abuse of detainees held in U.S. custody did not emerge from congressional investigations — there were no such investigations — or from other conventional means of oversight. Instead, a large portion of the public record on interrogation policy was uncovered through an unusually effective Freedom of Information […]
The U.S. Government was acquiescent in Pakistan’s acquisition of nuclear weapons technology over a period of decades, according to a new book on the subject. The activities of individual members of Pakistan’s nuclear procurement network in the United States are examined in detail by investigative reporters David Armstrong and Joseph Trento in “America and the […]
Within a week, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence will formally disclose the size of the National Intelligence Program budget for fiscal year 2007, an ODNI spokeswoman said. The anticipated disclosure marks the culmination of decades of advocacy, debate and litigation. Last July Congress enacted an intelligence budget disclosure requirement over White House […]
The treatment of injuries caused by chemical weapons and other chemical agents is addressed in a new military field manual (pdf). The manual, issued jointly by the Army, Navy, Marines and Air Force, characterizes the threat from chemical weapons, describes the diagnosis of chemical injuries and outlines preventive and remedial measures. See “Multiservice Tactics, Techniques, […]
It’s an impossible job, and perhaps it was meant to be. The Director of the Information Security Oversight Office (ISOO) has “responsibility for security classification, safeguarding and declassification policy and oversight throughout the Executive Branch of the United States Government.” Ability to leap tall buildings in a single bound is preferred but not required. Except […]
“It is an abuse of the classification process to withhold from Congress and the people of the United States broad assessments of the extent of corruption in the Iraqi Government.” Remarkably, that complaint was endorsed Tuesday by a large majority of the House of Representatives, which voted 395-21 to condemn the Administration’s restrictions on disclosure […]
A resolution has been introduced in the House of Representatives to honor the participants in “Post Office Box 1142,” a military intelligence interrogation program from World War II. “In advancing the Nation’s interests and uncovering vital secrets, the interrogators at P.O. Box 1142 never resorted to tactics such as sleep deprivation, electrical shock, or waterboarding. […]
The late Chuck Hansen, a relentless and resourceful researcher, worked for decades to document the history, technology, design and development of nuclear weapons. His findings helped nurture a continuing wave of scholarship and historical reflection on nuclear policy and technology. An extensive new collection of his most valuable and important acquisitions has recently been published […]
Earlier this year, the U.S. Army updated its Handbook on Weapon Systems. A copy of that illustrated and annotated catalog is now available online. Along with basic system data, each entry includes information about program contractors and foreign military sales, and other useful reference material. See “2007-2008 Army Weapon Systems.”
In a remarkable episode from the Civil War that is not as widely known as it might be, General Ulysses S. Grant issued Order No. 11 on December 17, 1862 expelling all Jews from those portions of Kentucky, Tennessee, and Mississippi where his forces had taken the field. Equally remarkable, President Lincoln did not say […]
In an attempt to convey to reporters the sensitivity of classified signals intelligence information and to discourage unnecessary disclosure of intelligence sources and methods, the National Security Agency held a series of by-invitation-only seminars for reporters and editors dubbed “SIGINT 101.” The seminars, which were apparently held on several occasions between 2002 and 2004, were […]