Re-Charting U.S. Government Agencies Involved in Nuclear Policy
http://cns.miis.edu/stories/111111_chart_usg_wmd.htm
In February 2009, analysts from the James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies (CNS) released a chart titled "U.S. government agencies combating nuclear proliferation."[1] The chart was inspired by an extensive discussion in the December 2008 Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD) Commission report of the deficiencies in coordination among the agencies responsible for preventing WMD terrorism.[2] Among its many findings, the Commission noted the dramatic increase in interagency committees and working groups, especially since the September 11, 2001 attacks. This trend, the report noted, was "accompanied by a considerable duplication of committee agendas and taskings."[3]
The CNS chart aimed to reflect the structural complexity of U.S. government efforts involved in crafting and implementing policies to counter nuclear proliferation. This chart received helpful comments and critiques from individuals in academic institutions, nongovernmental organizations, and, crucially, the government agencies themselves. Many of the comments suggested that the chart's depiction of the bureaucratic complexity, while largely accurate and instructive, still did not go far enough. Most of the comments also noted the need to add various agency office or government-funded institution. A revised version of the chart, incorporating these comments, was posted on the CNS website shortly after.
Introducing the 2011 Chart
The November 2011 update to the chart aims to depict the structural changes in U.S. government agencies that took place during the past two years. Unlike its 2009 version, this chart takes a broader view of nuclear policy making, adding some arms control and nonproliferation elements to counterproliferation policy.[4] It does so with the recognition that there are close relationships between these three government missions and includes activities such as: counterterrorism, deterrence, emergency response, export controls (related to nuclear, missile, and dual-use technologies), financial sanctions, missile defense, nuclear forensics, special operations, as well as activities related to the management of nuclear treaties, multilateral regimes, and less formally structured international programs, such as interdiction, nuclear fuel cycle engagement, threat reduction, and the intelligence support for all of these activities.
Several disclaimers are in order. First, and most crucially, this chart does not intend to be comprehensive in its scope. Some entities are deliberately omitted, as detailed in the section below. Further, the chart also suffers from selection biases. This update relied on the availability of organizational charts and press releases detailing the structural changes on the respective agency websites, all as of summer 2011. The chart also drew on two Department of Defense (DOD) publications, including: the first volume of the 2011 Report on the Activities and Programs for Countering Proliferation and NBC Terrorism, which offers the most comprehensive unclassified view of U.S. government counterproliferation activities; and the Guide to Arms Control Policy and Implementation Organizations, a Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA)-published list of contacts in U.S. government agencies involved in setting and implementing arms control policy.[5] As of this writing, no comparable summary publications were easily available on nuclear nonproliferation policy making.
Finally, the visual depiction of some department and office relationships, the selection of colors and abbreviations, the disparities in standardization and the level of detail on individual agencies, as well as certain omissions were the result of certain trade-offs between accuracy and aesthetic. As such, these choices may appear subjective. That said, any attempt at a comprehensive overview of even the minutest bureaucratic activity is probably not immune from some degree of subjectivity.
Detailing Key Changes between 2009 and 2011
This section briefly discusses the changes in government agencies depicted in the chart, highlights some of the differences between the 2009 and 2011 charts, and notes the entities that were omitted from the chart.
The National Security Council
In February 2009, the Obama administration announced changes to, and initiated an additional review of, the NSC structure, particularly as it related to countering terrorism.[6] In May 2009, the Homeland Security Council was incorporated into the NSC as part of a unified "National Security Staff."[7]
The Department of State[8]
There has been a range of structural changes within State since 2009. Most notably, Secretary Hillary Clinton announced the restructuring of the "T bureaus" in February 2010.[9] This restructuring aimed to "make arms control the centerpiece of a newly named Bureau of Arms Control, Verification and Compliance ... and concentrate the focus of [the] Bureau of International Security and Nonproliferation... on ... the proliferation challenges [the United States faces]."[10] Further, Robert Einhorn was appointed as Special Adviser for Nonproliferation and Arms Control in July 2009.[11] It should also be noted that several arguably key entities that have been omitted from this chart are the U.S. Ambassador to NATO and the U.S. Mission to Vienna.
The Department of Defense
There have been many structural changes within the DOD since 2009.[12] As in 2009, visually depicting all DOD units involved in nuclear policy making and implementing is a difficult task. Because of this, the chart may suffer from significant omissions. That said, the four key players in counterproliferation policy are easily identified due to their participation in the Standing Committee of the Interagency Counterproliferation Program Review Committee (SC CPRC). They include: the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Nuclear, Chemical, and Biological Defense Programs (ASD(NCB)), who chairs the SC CPRC; the Deputy Director for Force Structure, Resources, and Assessment/Director, Joint Requirements Office for Chemical, Biological, Radiological, and Nuclear Defense, Office of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (J-8); the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Global Strategic Affairs (ASD(GSA)); andthe Director of the Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA).[13]
The DOD includes a range of entities in the individual services, which are not depicted in the chart. These include, among others: the Department of the Air Force Strategic Plans and Policy Division under the Deputy Chief of Staff Operations, Plans and Requirements and Directorate for Operational Planning, Policy and Strategy (A5XP); DAMO-SS—the Department of the Army G-35, Directorate for Strategy, Plans and Policy; DAMO-SSD—the Combating WMD and Nuclear Proliferation Policy Division; DAMO-ODO/Treaties Branch—Operations and Contingency Plans Division, Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations and Plans (and related implementing agents); the United States Army Nuclear and Combating WMD Agency (USANCA); the Department of the Navy Naval Treaty Implementation Program (NTIP), which is located within the office of the Director of Strategic Systems Programs, under the Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Research, Development and Acquisition (ASN(RD&A)).[14]
Further, the chart also does not depict the Standing Joint Force Headquarters for WMD elimination that the Secretary of Defense directed USSTRACTCOM to establish during FY 2011.[15]
The Department of Energy[16]
There has been a range of structural changes within the DOE during these past two years.[17] Most notably, the chart reflects the changes in the structure of the National Nuclear Security Agency (NNSA).[18] Unlike the 2009 chart, the 2011 chart also includes several entities in the DOE Office of Nuclear Energy under the Office of the Under Secretary with the rationale that these play an important role in international fuel cycle activities.[19] Further, the 2011 chart takes greater care in depicting national laboratories and other sites that play an important role in nuclear deterrence-, threat reduction-, and nuclear fuel cycle-related activities, among others.
The Department of Homeland Security[20]
The 2011 chart is less detailed than the 2009 chart, highlighting only the National Technical Nuclear Forensics Center within the Domestic Nuclear Detection Office (DNDO).[21]
The Department of Justice[22]
The 2011 chart adds a depiction of several entities within the structure of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).[23] These include the Counterterrorism Division within the National Security Branch and the Criminal, Cyber, Response, and Services Branch that includes the Critical Incident Response Group (CIRG). The CIRG includes the Crisis Management Unit, which, in turn, commands the Domestic Emergency Support Team (DEST) and participates in the multi-agency Foreign Emergency Support Team (FEST, not depicted), which respond to domestic WMD threats and overseas terrorist incidents, respectively.[24]
The Department of Health and Human Services
The agency structure depiction differs from the 2009 chart in omitting the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response.[25]
The Department of Commerce
The agency structure depiction differs from the 2009 chart in portraying the Office of Nonproliferation and Treaty Compliance within the Bureau of Industry and Security.[26]
The Department of Treasury
The agency structure depiction does not differ from 2009 chart.[27]
The Intelligence Community
Unlike the 2009 chart, the 2011 chart groups 16 IC agencies in one cluster under the Office Director of National Intelligence (ODNI). The depiction does not distinguish between "Program Managers, who advise and assist the ODNI in identifying requirements, developing budgets, managing finances, and evaluating the IC's performance; Departmentals, who are IC components within government departments outside the Department of Defense that focus on serving their parent department's intelligence needs; and Services, which encompass intelligence personnel in the armed forces, and which primarily support their own Service's needs."[28]
Like in the 2009 chart, the 2011 chart depicts the National Counterproliferation Center (NCPC) and the National Counterterrorism Center (NCTC).[29] It also highlights the National Intelligence Council's Joint Atomic Energy Intelligence Committee, and the CIA's Office of Weapons Intelligence, Nonproliferation, and Arms Control Center (WINPAC).[30] The CBRN Counterterrorism Group (CCTG), comprised of Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and NCTC CBRN analysts is also new addition to the chart.[31]
Other entities
The 2011 chart excludes a handful of entities that were depicted on the 2009 chart. These include the National Science Foundation, the Environmental Protection Agency, and the National Academy of Sciences. Last, but not least, there are other important players in policy review and implementation, such as the Government Accountability Office and the U.S. Civilian Research & Development Foundation, which have also been excluded.
Acknowledgements and Concluding Notes
The author is grateful to the following individuals (listed in alphabetical order) for their insightful comments and assistance on the draft versions of this chart: Toby Dalton, Gregory Dwyer, Bryan Lee, Stephanie Lieggi, Mary Beth Nikitin, Joshua Pollack, Stephen Schwartz, Leonard Spector, and Charles Thornton. All inaccuracies, mistakes, and omissions remain the fault of the author.
Additional feedback regarding this chart is most welcome. The chart will be updated as needed.
Notes
[1] Anya Loukianova and Leonard Spector, "WMD Coordinator has the Right Stuff, but Will He Have the Right Staff?" February 13, 2009, http://cns.miis.edu/stories/090213_wmd_coordinator.htm.
[2]World At Risk, the report of the Commission on the Prevention of Weapons of Mass Destruction Proliferation and Terrorism, December 2008, chapter "Government Organization and Culture," available at http://www.absa.org/leg/WorldAtRisk.pdf.
[3]World At Risk, op. cit., pg. 83.
[4] In regard to counterproliferation policy, the formal members of the Interagency Counterproliferation Program Review Committee (ICPRC) include the Secretary of Defense (chair), the Secretary of Energy (vice chair), the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the Director of National Intelligence,and the secretaries of Homeland Security and State.
[5] See theReport on the Activities and Programs for Countering Proliferation and NBC Terrorism, Volume 1, Executive Summary, May 2011, available at http://www.acq.osd.mil, and theGuide to Arms Control Policy and Implementation Organizations, Defense Threat Reduction Agency, April 2011, http://dtirp.dtra.mil/pdfs/411p.pdf.
[6]See Presidential Policy Directive-1 of February 13, 2009, available at http://www.fas.org/irp/offdocs/ppd/ppd-1.pdf, and Presidential Study Directive-1 of February 23, 2009, available at http://www.fas.org/irp/offdocs/psd/psd-1.pdf.
[7]"Statement by the President on the White House Organization for Homeland Security and Counterterrorism," The White House, May 26, 2009, http://m.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/statement-president-white-house-organization-homeland-security-and-counterterrorism.
[8] Note that, according to the Report on Activities and Programs..., op. cit., the Director of the Office of Technology and Assessments, Bureau of Verification, Compliance, and Implementation participates in the Standing Committee of the Interagency Counterproliferation Program Review Committee.
[9] Note that the most recent organizational chart available on the State Departmentwebsite is the one from March 2009, which does not include the reorganization of the T bureaus. See the link to this chart here, http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/rls/dos/index.htm. The ISN organizational chart is available at http://www.state.gov/t/isn/c7994.htm and the AVC organizational chart is available at http://www.state.gov/t/avc/c23747.htm.
[10]Ellen O. Tauscher, "Secretary Clinton Announces New Arms Control, Verification and Compliance Bureau," February 24, 2010, http://blogs.state.gov/index.php/site/entry/reorganization_initiative.The reorganization was in part triggered in part by a 2009 Government Accountability Office (GAO) report that cited concerns about the duplication of efforts at State.
[11]"Appointment of Special Adviser for Nonproliferation and Arms Control Robert J. Einhorn," State Department press release, June 1, 2009, http://state.gov/r/pa/prs/ps/2009/06a/124201.htm.
[12] See the DOD organizational chart at http://www.defense.gov/orgchart/.
[13] See Report on the Activities and Programs, op. cit.
[14] See Guide to Arms Control Policy and Implementation Organizations, Defense Threat Reduction Agency, April 2011, http://dtirp.dtra.mil/pdfs/411p.pdf.
[15]See Report on the Activities and Programs, op. cit.
[16] Also note that the Assistant Deputy Administrator for Nonproliferation and Verification Research & Development, National Nuclear Security Administration, DOE serves as the Vice Chair of the Standing Committee of the Interagency Counterproliferation Program Review Committee.Report on Activities and Programs..., op. cit.
[17] See the latest available organizational chart, updated August 2, 2011, http://energy.gov/downloads/doe-organization-chart-august-2-2011.
[18] See "NNSA's Defense Programs Announces Reorganization, Forms New Science Council to Explore Cross-Cutting Issues," NNSA press release, August 5, 2010, http://nnsa.energy.gov/mediaroom/pressreleases/sciencecouncil080510.
[19] See the organizational chart, updated July 17, 2011, http://www.ne.doe.gov/neOrganization.html.
[20] Also note that the Under Secretary of Homeland Security for Science and Technology participates in the Standing Committee of the Interagency Counterproliferation Program Review Committee.Report on Activities and Programs..., op. cit.
[21] See DNDO directorates listing at the DHS website, updated September 21, 2011, http://www.dhs.gov/xabout/structure/editorial_0766.shtm.
[22] Also note that the FBI's WMD Directorate informally participates in the Standing Committee of the Interagency Counterproliferation Program Review Committee. Report on Activities and Programs..., op. cit.
[23] See FBI's organizational chart, updated January 20, 2010, http://www.fbi.gov/contact-us/fbi-headquarters/org_chart.
[24]See the descriptions of Counterterrorism Division athttp://www.fbi.gov/about-us/investigate/terrorism, the CIRG at http://www.fbi.gov/about-us/cirg,and"Investigations& Operations Support," FBI website, undated, athttp://www.fbi.gov/about-us/cirg/investigations-and-operations-support.
[25] See website of the office, updated on September 29, 2011, at http://www.phe.gov/preparedness/pages/default.aspx.
[26] See Bureau of Industry and Security program offices, undated, http://www.bis.doc.gov/about/programoffices.htm.
[27]See description of the Office of Foreign Assets Control at the Treasury website, updated March 31, 2011, http://www.treasury.gov/about/organizational-structure/offices/Pages/Office-of-Foreign-Assets-Control.aspx.
[28] This is the discussion and depiction in "A Complex Organization United Under a Single Goal: National Security," Intelligence.gov, undated,http://www.intelligence.gov/about-the-intelligence-community/structure/.
[29] Also note that the NCPC's Deputy Director of Resource Management & Investment is a participant in the Standing Committee of the Interagency Counterproliferation Program Review Committee.
[30] See additional NIC structures in "National Intelligence Council," IC directive no. 207, June 2008, http://www.dni.gov/electronic_reading_room/ICD_207.pdf.
[31] This information is from Report on Activities and Programs..., op. cit.