Asked by The Universal Human and Civil Rights Union, from Brooklyn, New York
The Obama administration has increasingly relied on drones in its counterterrorist operations. And, as I explain in a recent CFR report, U.S. special operations forces are doing more things in more places than ever before. The heavy reliance on both drones and unilateral commando raids needs to be reassessed.
Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel held a press conference in Abu Dhabi to wrap up his five day trip to Egypt, Israel, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, and United Arab Emirates. He discussed U.S. intelligence on the use of chemical weapons in Syria.
The Boston Marathon bombings illustrate the stresses on domestic intelligence gathering and counterterrorism in a democratic system, says CFR's Richard Falkenrath.
The FBI released several documents and updates on their investigations on the Boston Marathon bombings, including a 2011 request from a foreign government on information about Tamerlan Tsarnaev.
Linda Robinson discusses her recently released Council Special Report, The Future of U.S. Special Operations Forces, which calls for conceptual, institutional, and operational changes to reorient U.S. special operations forces to ensure that they are employed to best effect.
Douglas Dillon Fellow Micah Zenko asserts that shifting lead executive authority for U.S. drone strikes from the CIA to the Pentagon is the essential first step toward greater transparency and oversight.
Grounded in a realistic assessment of technology, Matthew C. Waxman and Kenneth Anderson outline a practical alternative with which to evaluate the use of autonomous weaponry that incorporates codes of conduct based on traditional legal and ethical principles governing weapons and warfare.
Director of National Intelligence James Clapper testified before the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence on March 12, 2013, and before the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligenceon April 11, 2013, regarding the Intelligence Community's Worldwide Threat Assessment. He discussed the effects of sequestration on the intelligence community and listed cybersecurity as the top threat to U.S. security.
For many senior Pakistani spies, the man sitting in the jail cell represented solid proof of their suspicions that the C.I.A. had sent a vast secret army to Pakistan, men who sowed chaos and violence as part of the covert American war in the country. For the C.I.A., the eventual disclosure of [Raymond] Davis's role with the agency shed an unflattering light on a post–Sept. 11 reality: that the C.I.A. had farmed out some of its most sensitive jobs to outside contractors — many of them with neither the experience nor the temperament to work in the war zones of the Islamic world.
Asked by Erich Helmreich, from New York University
Problems of attribution make deterrence difficult because it is hard to deter if you cannot punish, and you cannot punish without knowing who is behind an attack.
FDR Treasury official Harry Dexter White was the leading architect of the Bretton Woods international monetary and financial system. But he was also a vital agent for Soviet intelligence in the 1930s and '40s. This article brings to bear startling new archival evidence to illuminate his motives.
The U.S. Senate Select Committee on Intelligence held this confirmation hearing for CIA director nominee John Brennan on February 7, 2013. The Committee posted Brennan's responses to their questionnaire for presidential nominees and additional prehearing questions, and CSPAN provided video of the hearing.
Foreign Affairs editor Gideon Rose speaks with Sarah Holewinski and Micah Zenko about John Brennan's appointment as the head of the CIA and the current status and future of the war on terror.
Max Boot says recent films about the CIA focus on the agency's successful operations, but also highlight a real problem—that it's actually a hypercautious bureaucracy.
Speakers: Carl Colby and Tim Weiner Introductory Speaker: David Johnson Presider: Dina Temple-Raston
Tim Weiner and film director Carl Colby discuss the film The Man Nobody Knew, which uncovers the secret world of a legendary CIA spymaster William Colby.
Speakers: Carl Colby and Tim Weiner Introductory Speaker: David Johnson Presider: Dina Temple-Raston
Tim Weiner and film director Carl Colby discuss the film The Man Nobody Knew, which uncovers the secret world of a legendary CIA spymaster William Colby.
The Council on Foreign Relations' David Rockefeller Studies Program—CFR's "think tank"—is home to more than seventy full-time, adjunct, and visiting scholars and practitioners (called "fellows"). Their expertise covers the world's major regions as well as the critical issues shaping today's global agenda. Download the printable CFR Experts Guide.
Special operations play a critical role in how the United States confronts irregular threats, but to have long-term strategic impact, the author argues, numerous shortfalls must be addressed.
The author analyzes the potentially serious consequences, both at home and abroad, of a lightly overseen drone program and makes recommendations for improving its governance.
Two experts argue that despite myriad development strategies, only one can succeed in alleviating poverty in India: the overall growth of the country's economy. More
