Between 1947 and 2004, the U.S. intelligence system consisted of 15 separate age
ID: 1191774 • Letter: B
Question
Between 1947 and 2004, the U.S. intelligence system consisted of 15 separate agencies, including several that were run within the Department of Defense and dedicated to obtaining intelligence data through technical means such asspy satellites. An official appointed by the president of the United States — the director of Central Intelligence — was responsible for coordinating all the agen-cies concerned with foreign intelligence. Following September 11, 2001, a num-ber of official investigations concluded that lack of coordination among intelligence agencies was one reason that the U.S. government did not foresee and forestall the attacks. Per the recommendations of the 9/11 Commission,Congress passed the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004, which President George W. Bush signed into law on December 17,2004. The director of National Intelligence is the chief of all 16 U.S. intelligence agencies and is supposed to coordinate their work and analytic product. The head of the Central Intelligence Agency reports to him.In the run-up to the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq in 2003, virtually the entire intelligence system of the United States (and the world) held the mistaken belief that Saddam Hussein possessed weapons of mass destruction. In the 12 years preceding the invasion, “ the Intelligence Community did not produce a single analytical product that examined the possibility that Saddam Hussein’s desire to escape sanctions … would cause him to destroy his WMD ” (WMDCommission, 2005, pp. 155 – 156).The intelligence agencies relied heavily on information supplied by Iraqi ex-iles, some of whose reports came through the Iraqi National Congress, an um-brella Iraqi opposition group organized in the early 1990s that attempted to coordinate the actions of all the anti-Hussein groups. The reports contained
similar findings, and this appearance of corroboration made them persuasive.In 2007, the U.S. intelligence agency produced the National Intelligence Estimate. This document stated that U.S. agencies “ judge with high confidencethat in fall 2003, Tehran halted its nuclear weapons program ” and that “ thehalt lasted at least several years. ” But in 2009 that opinion was reversed.
1. Does a hierarchical system make sense for collection of intelligence?
2. Is the new hierarchical organization working for U.S. intelligence agencies?
Explanation / Answer
An intelligence system of any country acts at an official yet secret level for the prevention of attacks and maintainence of peace and sovreignity of the country. The nature of intellectual activities which are necessary for the protection of the borders vary according to geographical circumstances, the political climate, the relations with the neighbouring countries and the economic situation of the country which determines the amount to be spent for such activities.
A sense answerability and accountability in an hierarchial system is much needed when the data of the intelligence system is used for matters of national importance. Levels of hierarchy could be reduced or the regulations and the code of conduct could be designed in such a manner as to allow the system to work with unnecessary interference but the system of hierarchy cannot be completely abolished.
The recommendations of the 9/11 commission, did not include the formation of a robust system and infrastructure for coordination and synchronisation of the activities all the intelligence agencies. The Act which was passed stressed more on the penalties for the terrorist activities however it missed on the system related reporting infrastructure.
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