Intelligence Issues For Congress PDF Download

The U.S. Intelligence Community continues to adjust to the post-Cold War environment. Congressional and executive branch initiatives have emphasized enhancing cooperation among the different agencies that comprise the Community by giving greater managerial authority to the Director of Central Intelligence (DCI). Priority continues to be placed on intelligence support to military operations and on involvement in efforts to combat narcotics trafficking and, especially since September 11, 2001, international terrorism. Growing concerns about transnational threats are leading to increasingly close cooperation between intelligence and law enforcement agencies. This relationship is complicated, however, by differing roles and missions as well as statutory charters. The September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, for which no specific warning was available, have led to increased emphasis on human intelligence, better cooperation between law enforcement and intelligence agencies, and on consideration of organizational changes to the Intelligence Community. Intelligence Community leadership and congressional committees have expressed determination to enhance analytical capabilities. A major concern is an imbalance between resources devoted to collection and those allocated to analysis, with collected data much exceeding analytical capabilities. In several regional crisis areas, the role of the U.S. Intelligence Community is especially important. U.S. intelligence has been used in monitoring security arrangements between Israelis and Palestinians, in attempting to enforce U.N. sanctions on Iraq, in monitoring peace agreements in Bosnia, and in providing precise targeting data on Taliban targets in Afghanistan and on Serbian targets during the Kosovo crisis. A particular concern for many in Congress has been the Intelligence Community's assessment of the missile attack capabilities of foreign countries, especially North Korea.