Briefing Books

“Briefing Books” are one-stop resources covering a full range of topics in U.S. foreign policy. Containing from 5 to 100+ documents, each briefing book features an introductory essay, individual document descriptions, related photo or video content, plus links for further reading.
Srebrenica Conference Documents Detail Path to Genocide from 1993 to 1995
| Briefing Book
IN THE NEWS International Decision-Making in the Age of Genocide: Srebrenica 1993-1995 "Critical Oral History" Conference Marks 20th Anniversary of Srebrenica Massacre.
The Gas Centrifuge Secret: Origins of a U.S. Policy of Nuclear Denial, 1954-1960
| Briefing Book
Washington, D.C., June 29, 2015 – Long before Iran’s nuclear enrichment capabilities – based on gas centrifuge technology – became the center of international negotiations, the U.S. tried to deny…
Nixon, Kissinger, and the Madman Strategy during Vietnam War
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Washington, D.C., May 29, 2015 — President Richard Nixon and his national security adviser Henry Kissinger believed they could compel "the other side" to back down during crises in the Middle East…
Anatoly S. Chernyaev Diary, 1975
| Briefing Book
"Anatoly Chernyaev's diary is one of the great internal records of the Gorbachev years, a trove of irreplaceable observations about a turning point in history.
US: Mexico Mass Graves Raise "Alarming Questions" about Government "Complicity" in September 2014 Cartel Killings
| Briefing Book
Related Links Migration Declassified The Archive's blog on Mexico, migration, and human rights "Mexican Authorities Implicated in Violence, but U.S. Security Aid Continues to Flow" By Cora Currier…
Operation Condor: National Security Archive Presents Trove of Declassified Documentation in Historic Trial in Argentina
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In the News La evolución del Cóndor Director del prestigioso Proyecto Documentación Cono Sur del Archivo de Seguridad Nacional en Washington, habló en el juicio en Buenos Aires.  Por Alejandra…
LBJ Regretted Ordering U.S. Troops into Dominican Republic in 1965, White House Tapes Confirm; Yet He Insisted, "I'd do the same thing right this second."
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Washington, D.C., April 28, 2015 – President Lyndon Johnson regretted sending U.S.
International Atomic Energy Agency Lacks Transparency, Observers and Researchers Say
| Briefing Book
Washington, D.C. April 24, 2015 - The nuclear inspection agency that is central to the current Iran negotiations is flunking international transparency norms, according to a report posted today by…
1994 Rwanda Pullout Driven by Clinton White House, U.N. Equivocation
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Washington, DC, April 16, 2015 – Newly declassified Clinton White House e-mails and notes detail a decisive U.S.
The U.S. Discovery of Israel's Secret Nuclear Project
| Briefing Book
Washington, D.C., April 15, 2015 – The U.S. government first learned of Israel's secret nuclear program at Dimona from an American corporate official talking to U.S.
NASA's Secret Relationships with U.S. Defense and Intelligence Agencies
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Washington, DC, April 10, 2015 – Furnishing cover stories for covert operations, monitoring Soviet missile tests, and supplying weather data to the U.S.
Rwanda Re-Examined
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IN THE NEWS Exclusive: Rwanda Revisited By Colum Lynch, Foreign Policy, April 5, 2015 Declassified U.N. Cables Reveal Turning Point in Rwanda Crisis of 1994 By Mark Landler, The New York Times,…
New Memoir by Participant in U.S. H-Bomb Program Sheds Light on the Making of the First Test Device
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Washington, D.C., March 24, 2015 – A new scientific memoir by one of the few surviving participants in the U.S. H-bomb project provides fresh information and insights into the production of the world…
USA embassy in Moscow, 2008
The CIA and Signals Intelligence
| Briefing Book
Washington, DC, March 20, 2015 – For decades the Central Intelligence Agency has conducted a major signals intelligence (SIGINT) effort that often placed it in competition with other members of…
The CIA and Signals Intelligence
| Briefing Book
Washington, DC, March 20, 2015 – For decades the Central Intelligence Agency has conducted a major signals intelligence (SIGINT) effort that often placed it in competition with other members of the…
Most Agencies Falling Short on Mandate for Online Records
| Briefing Book, | FOIA Audit
In the News Happy Sunshine Week: National Security Archive names E-Delinquents in 2015 E-FOIA Audit By Ms. Smith, Network World, March 17, 2015
Perestroika in the Soviet Union: 30 Years On
| Briefing Book
Washington, DC, March 11, 2015 – Thirty years ago today, in the Kremlin, the Soviet Politburo unanimously elected its youngest member, Mikhail Gorbachev, to the pinnacle of Soviet power — General…
Perestroika in the Soviet Union: 30 Years On
| Briefing Book
Washington, DC, March 11, 2015 – Thirty years ago today, in the Kremlin, the Soviet Politburo unanimously elected its youngest member, Mikhail Gorbachev, to the pinnacle of Soviet power — General…
Archive Sues State Department Over Kissinger Telcons
| Briefing Book
n the News Somebody Else Is Suing the State Department—To Get Kissinger’s Phone Calls By Asawin Suebsaeng, The Daily Beast, March 12, 2015 State Department hit with suit for Kissinger records By…
The Merchant of Death's Account Book
| Briefing Book
Washington, DC, February 23, 2015 –Documents posted for the first time — in a collaboration between the National Security Archive and VICE News — provide insight into the U.S.