disarmament

New report on non-strategic nuclear weapons, missing classified document, U.S. nuclear forces and much more.

New Report on Non-Strategic Nuclear Weapons

• Non-Strategic Nuclear Weapons: A new FAS Special Report written by Hans M. Kristensen comes three weeks before 28 NATO member countries convene in Chicago on May 20-21 to approve the conclusions of a year-long Deterrence and Defense Posture Review (DDPR). Among other issues, the review will determine the number and role of the U.S. non-strategic nuclear weapons deployed in Europe and how NATO might work to reduce its nuclear posture.

From the Blogs

• Counterintelligence Surveillance Under FISA Grew in 2011: In a new report to Congress from the Department of Justice, in 2011 the U.S. Government submitted 1,745 applications to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court for authorization to conduct electronic surveillance or physical searches under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA). The report states that of that number, there were 1,676 requests for authority to perform electronic surveillance. In 2010, there were 1,579 such applications (including 1,511 for electronic surveillance).

• Classified Records Said to be Missing from National Archives: A three-year investigation by the Inspector General found that more than a thousand boxes of classified government records are believed to be missing from the Washington National Records Center (WNRC) of the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA). But there are no indications of theft or espionage, an official said.

• Admin Presses for Renewal of FISA Surveillance Authority: The Obama Administration is urging Congress to renew provisions of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) Amendments Act that are set to expire at the end of this year. One of the key provisions of the act would permit the electronic surveillance of entire categories of non-U.S. persons who are located abroad “without the need for a court order for each individual target.”

2012 Nuclear Security Summit,secret drone technology, nuclear limbo and much more.

2012 Nuclear Security Summit

• Listen to the new edition of the FAS podcast series, “A Conversation With An Expert,”  featuring FAS President Dr. Charles Ferguson. In this podcast, Dr. Ferguson discusses the goals of the upcoming Nuclear Security Summit in Seoul, securing fissile materials, and nuclear terrorism.

• Visit our 2012 Nuclear Security Summit policy page on our website which highlights FAS work and resources on nuclear security, fissile materials and much more.

• FAS President Dr. Charles Ferguson examines the national and international efforts to control and secure radioactive materials, and offers suggestions on how to reduce the risk of radiological terrorism in a new paper published by the US-Korea Institute at SAIS. 

FAS Roundup: January 30, 2012

New developments in radiation treatment and diagnosis, no cuts in nuclear forces in defense budget, domestic use of drones, new leak case against CIA officer and much more.

From the Blogs

• Domestic Use of Drones is Well Underway: The use of unmanned aerial systems (UAS) within the United States is certain to increase in the years to come, as a new Army policy has recently made clear. But, the use of unmanned aircraft or drones within U.S. airspace has already advanced to a degree that is not widely recognized.

• Budget Blunder: “No Cuts” in Nuclear Forces: “There are no cuts made in the nuclear force in this budget.” That clear statement was made on January 26, 2012 by deputy defense secretary Ashton Carter during the Pentagon’s briefing on the defense budget request for Fiscal Year 2013. Hans Kristensen writes that this statement is disappointing for anyone who had hopes that the administration’s promises about “concrete steps” to reduce the number and role of nuclear weapons and to “put an end to Cold War thinking” would actually be reflected in the new defense budget.

• Presidential Signing Statements and More from CRS:  Secrecy News has obtained new CRS reports on topics such as veterans benefits, Iran sanctions and the FBI and terrorism investigations.

• A Small Death in Tehran: The recent death of Mostafa Ahmadi Roshan, the 32 year-old deputy director of one of Iran’s uranium enrichment facilities, brings the total of assassinations to five among what was a small group of people to begin with. There are two aspects to this act – the morality of such assassinations and their efficacy, which Dr. Y examines on the ScienceWonk blog.

• New Leak Case Relies on 1982 Law on Intelligence Identities: Former CIA officer John Kiriakou became the latest person to be charged under the Espionage Act with unauthorized disclosures of classified information. But unlike the previous defendants, Mr. Kiriakou was also charged with violating the Intelligence Identities Protection Act for allegedly disclosing the identity of a covert intelligence officer to a journalist. Steven Aftergood analyzes the history of this Act and the case against Mr. Kiriakou.

• New Doctrine on Intelligence Support to Military Operations:  Secrecy News has obtained an updated doctrine produced by the Joint Chiefs of Staff on intelligence support to military operations.  The new doctrine reflects changes in intelligence organizations, roles and missions.
• New Developments in Radiation Diagnosis and Treatment: For the last several years the threat of nuclear and radiological terrorism has given us all a good scare and one of our responses has been to throw a lot of money into improving our ability to respond medically to such an attack. Dr. Y writes about a few strategies for diagnosis and treatment.
• DoD Support to Foreign Disaster Relief:  Secrecy News has obtained a new guide prepared by the Department of Defense for military personnel who are engaged in foreign disaster relief operations, an endeavor which arises with some frequency.
• Court Says Review of Security Clearance Dispute is “Prohibited”: A government agency’s decision to revoke an employee’s security clearance cannot be reviewed by a federal court even if the decision is based on ethnic discrimination or religious prejudice or other unconstitutional grounds, a court said last week.

FAS Roundup: December 12, 2011

Status of China’s nuclear arsenal, new START data, tracking of cell phones and vehicles by law enforcement and more.

From the Blogs

• Tracking Cell Phones and Vehicles- The Legal Context:  Secrecy News has obtained a new CRS report which explores the ongoing legal debates over the tracking of private cell phones and vehicles by law enforcement agencies.

• No, China Does Not Have 3,000 Nuclear Weapons: Only the Chinese government knows how many nuclear weapons China has. As in most other nuclear weapon states, the number is a closely held secret. A recent example of how not to make an estimate is the study recently published by the Asia Arms Control Project at Georgetown University. The study (China’s Underground Great Wall: Challenge for Nuclear Arms Control) suggests that China may have as many as 3,000 nuclear weapons. Although we don’t know exactly how many nuclear weapons China has, we are pretty sure that it doesn’t have 3,000. In fact, the Georgetown University estimate appears to be off by an order of magnitude.

• Legislative Secrecy Declines, But Endures: Congress is the most transparent and publicly accessible branch of government, and yet there are many aspects of the legislative process that are opaque and off-limits to public awareness. Secrecy News obtained a recently released CRS report which discusses the transparency of the U.S. Congress.

• US Releases Full New START Data: Hans Kristensen, Director of the Nuclear Information Project, writes that the recent release of U.S. aggregate data under New START by the State Department is a good development as it increases transparency of U.S. nuclear forces, and restores the practice under the previous START treaty of disclosing such information to the public. Now, the pressure is on Russia to publish its New START data as well.

• When Does Public Disclosure Make Secrecy Moot?: The U.S. State Department insists that the publication of many thousands of classified diplomatic cables by WikiLeaks does not alter their classification status. In a FOIA lawsuit by the ACLU for 23 of the cables, the State Department released redacted versions of  11 cables; they withheld the other 12 cables, despite them being available online.

• CRS Loses Several Senior Staffers: The Congressional Research Service gained a new Director this week, but it has recently lost several of its most experienced and accomplished analysts. Steven Aftergood writes that with the departure of senior staff, CRS is also experiencing deeper changes that will leave it with diminished capacity to provide original analysis and insight to Congress and other would-be consumers.

Goodbye to the B53, mystery behind the 1969 nuclear alert, new START data, advice for Washington regarding Iran and much more.

From the Blogs

• New CRS reports, including casualty figures from the war in Afghanistan and more.

• Mystery of the 1969 Nuclear Alert: In October 1969, the Nixon Administration secretly placed U.S. nuclear forces on alert for two weeks. Still today, no conclusive explanation for the potentially destabilizing alert can be found.  Even with full access to the classified record, State Department historians said in a new volume of the Foreign Relations of the United States (FRUS) series that they were unable to provide a definitive account of the event.

• FRUS Leads Declassification, but Sometimes Lags Behind: Steven Aftergood writes about the State Department’s Foreign Relations of the United States (FRUS) series, which serves as a driver of declassification, propelling it farther and faster than it would otherwise go.  But it’s not always at its best.

• End of the B53 Era; Continuation of the Spin Era: On Tuesday, October 27, one of the largest weapons in the United States nuclear weapons arsenal, the B53, was dismantled in Amarillo, Texas. Retired from the arsenal in 1997, the dismantlement of the B53 marks the end of the era of large, multi-megaton bombs, a hallmark of the Cold War. “We certainly congratulate the administration on finally dismantling the old B53, but one should not over-spin the achievement. The B53 dismantlement involves less than 50 warheads; the U.S. has approximately 8,500 intact warheads (counting those in the stockpile and dismantlement queue)”, said Hans M. Kristensen, Director, Nuclear Information Project.

• Army Weapons Systems: Steven Aftergood writes about the 2012 edition of the U.S. Army Weapon Systems handbook which provides a concise description of dozens of Army weapon systems and programs.