A private researcher investigating the history of the U.S. biological weapons program at the National Archives recently came up empty. “She asked for the files for Fort Detrick from 1946 to 1956, and was brought 16 cartons,” recounted Milton Leitenberg of the University of Maryland. “However, every single file in every one of the 16 […]
With its decision last week to strike down the Bush Administration’s unilateral creation of military tribunals for trying detainees, the Supreme Court highlighted and reinforced the rule of law in the conduct of military operations. Several recent publications provide rich background on military law. The 2006 edition of the “Operational Law Handbook” (pdf) published by […]
The U.S. Marine Corps has recently published a series of documents on counterinsurgency: “Small-Unit Leaders’ Guide to Counterinsurgency,” June 2006 (4.7 MB PDF file). “Countering Irregular Threats: A Comprehensive Approach,” 14 June 2006 (3.2 MB PDF file). “Tentative Manual for Countering Irregular Threats: An Updated Approach to Counterinsurgency Operations,” 7 June 2006.
Military doctrine on the control of stress in combat is presented in a new Army field manual (pdf). “In our own Soldiers and in the enemy combatants, control of stress is often the decisive difference between victory and defeat across the operational continuum. Battles and wars are won more by controlling the will to fight […]
The fortieth anniversary of the Freedom of Information Act, signed into law by President Johnson on July 4, 1966, was marked with the release of several interesting and informative publications. The colorful and contentious history behind the adoption of the Act was described by Tom Blanton of the National Security Archive based on documents obtained […]
Three years into the war in Iraq, the U.S. Army has nearly completed a thorough revision and update of its official doctrine on counterinsurgency (pdf). “It has been 20 years since the U.S. Army published a manual devoted to counterinsurgency operations, and 25 since the Marine Corps published its last such manual. With our Soldiers […]
Some notable new reports of the Congressional Research Service not readily available to the public include the following. “Nonproliferation and Threat Reduction Assistance: U.S. Programs in the Former Soviet Union” (pdf), updated June 26, 2006. “Syria: U.S. Relations and Bilateral Issues” (pdf), June 22, 2006. “Pakistan-U.S. Relations” (pdf), June 21, 2006. “Iraq: Recent Developments in […]
The House of Representatives last week condemned the unauthorized disclosure of classified information concerning a government program to track terrorist financing that was reported in the New York Times, the Los Angeles Times and other news outlets on June 23. The June 29 resolution, approved 227-183, included a veiled rebuke to the press, stating that […]
One reason why classification is an unreliable guide as to what should or should not be published by the press is that classification policy is implemented erratically by the government. In a new report for Congress, the Government Accountability Office found numerous problems in classification activity at the Department of Defense. “Our review of a […]
Stanley Moskowitz, a Central Intelligence Agency official who recently played a leading role in winning declassification of intelligence records on Nazi war criminals, died last week. “Stan Moskowitz deserves a lot of credit for the Nazi records release, which he managed to accomplish despite a lot of opposition from a directorate which shall not be […]
The global war on terror has cost the U.S. $437 billion since September 11, the Congressional Research Service estimated last month, including $319 billion for the war in Iraq. (The Pentagon claims the latter figure should be $210 billion.) The CRS cost estimate has been widely reported, but the underlying report has not been widely […]
Although the British government has promised a full and open public debate about the future of Britain’s nuclear deterrent, it has so far failed to explain what decisions need to be made, failed to provide a timetable for those decisions, and has refused to participate in a House of Commons Defence Committee inquiry on the […]