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.
Reading the North Korean Tea Leaves: The Perpetual Struggle to Fathom Pyongyang's Motives and Goals
| Briefing Book
Washington, D.C., April 11, 2013 – For decades, the erratic behavior of North Korea's enigmatic leaders has often masked a mix of symbolic and pragmatic motives, according to declassified documents…
Freedom of Information Follies: FOIA Reviewers Declassify Same Rwanda Document Four Times, Creating New Secrets Each Time
| Briefing Book
Washington, D.C., April 3, 2013 – The U.S.
Indicted for Genocide: Guatemala's Efraín Ríos Montt
| Briefing Book
Washington, D.C., March 19, 2013 – The groundbreaking genocide trial of Efraнn Rнos Montt, retired army general and former dictator of Guatemala, opens today with the presentation of the prosecution'…
The Iraq War Ten Years After
| Briefing Book
Archive Electronic Briefing Books Cited in This Posting THE IRAQ WAR -- PART II: Was There Even a Decision? October 1, 2010 THE IRAQ WAR -- PART I: The U.S. Prepares for Conflict, 2001 September 22…
Freedom of Information Regulations: Still Outdated, Still Undermining Openness
| Briefing Book, | FOIA Audit
IN THE NEWS Agencies lag on transparency, report says By Josh Hicks, The Washington Post, December 4, 2012 Federal Agencies Are Failing to Uphold Obama's Stated Commitment to Transparency By Rebecca…
Operation Condor on Trial: Legal Proceedings on Latin America Rendition and Assassination Program Open in Buenos Aires
| Briefing Book
Related Links Una justicia que trasciende las fronteras Por Alejandra Dandan, March, 6 2013 STOLEN BABIES: Argentina Convicts Two Military Dictators July 5, 2012 Kissinger Blocked Demarche on…
State Department Intelligence and Research Predicted 1973 Arab-Israeli War
| Briefing Book
Washington, D.C., March 5, 2013 – The fabled but previously secret State Department intelligence memorandum that predicted, five months in advance, the 1973 Arab-Israeli war, has now emerged from…
U.S. Officials Hoped Chinese Liberalization Program for Tibet in Early 1980s Would Bring Significant Improvements
| Briefing Book
Washington, D.C., February 28, 2013 – U.S.
Oscars: Declassified Tell History Behind Best Foreign Film Nomination, "NO"
| Briefing Book
Washington, D.C., February 22, 2013 – Chilean ruler General Augusto Pinochet intended to use violence to annul the October 1988 plebiscite that ended his lengthy military dictatorship, according to…
U.S. Detected Indian Nuclear Test Preparations in 1995, but Photo Evidence was "Clear As Mud"
| Briefing Book
The Clinton Administration and the Indian Nuclear Test That Didn't Happen — 1995-1996 Washington, D.C., February 22, 2013 – In the last months of 1995, U.S intelligence agencies detected signs of…
Alan Gross Case Spotlights U.S. Democracy Programs in Cuba
| Briefing Book
Washington, D.C., January 18, 2013 – The U.S.
The Zero Dark Thirty File
| Briefing Book
Washington, DC, January 17, 2013 – The poster for the blockbuster movie Zero Dark Thirty features black lines of redaction over the title, which unintentionally illustrate the most accurate take-away…
The Jonathan Pollard Spy Case: The CIA's 1987 Damage Assessment Declassified
| Briefing Book
Washington, DC, December 14, 2012 – When Naval Investigative Service analyst Jonathan Pollard spied for Israel in 1984 and 1985, his Israeli handlers asked primarily for nuclear, military and…
Space-Based Early Warning: From MIDAS to DSP to SBIRS
| Briefing Book
Washington D.C., November 9, 2007 - In anticipation of the planned launch of the final Defense Support Program (DSP) satellite tomorrow evening, which was originally scheduled to be orbited in…
Space-Based Early Warning: From MIDAS to DSP to SBIRS
| Briefing Book
Washington D.C., January 8, 2013 - As the United States prepares to transition this month from Cold War-era missile detection programs to a more sophisticated infrared platform, recently declassified…
Lifting the Veil on Colombia's "Emerald Czar"
| Briefing Book
Colombian Army "Facilitated" Paramilitary Operation at Miraflores "From Beginning to End" "Big-Time Narco" Carranza one of the "Best Known" Paramilitaries in Colombia but "Content to Operate Behind…
Soviet Invasion of Afghanistan Was Not a Grand Design But a Grand Entanglement Resulting from Faulty Intelligence, Excessive Secrecy, and a Paralyzed Leadership, According to Conference of Former Decision-Makers
| Briefing Book
Washington, D.C., December 21, 2012 – On December 12, 1979, the Soviet Politburo gathered to formally approve the decision made several days earlier to send a "limited contingent" of Soviet forces…
U.S. Had Plans for "Full Nuclear Response" In Event President Killed or Disappeared during an Attack on the United States
| Briefing Book
Washington, D.C., December 12, 2012 – As late as 1968, the U.S.
Outdated Agency Regs Undermine Freedom of Information
| Briefing Book, | FOIA Audit
IN THE NEWS Updated December 6, 2012 Agencies lag on transparency, report says By Josh Hicks, The Washington Post, December 4, 2012 Federal Agencies Are Failing to Uphold Obama's Stated Commitment…
Declassified Documents Trace U.S. Policy Shifts on Use of Commercial Satellite Imagery from 1970s to Today
| Briefing Book
Washington, DC, November 27, 2012 – In the forty years since the first launch of a commercial imagery satellite – LANDSAT – in 1972, U.S. official policy has shifted dramatically from imposing…