Government Reports
On March 12, 2013, the Obama Administration released a fact sheet aimed at addressing some misconceptions of their Export Control Reform Initiative. The fact sheet covers questions about firearms, human rights, arms embargoes, mulitlateral commitments, and other issues.
The terrorist group AQAP, one of the top threats to U.S. national security, is based in Yemen—a country facing serious economic and social challenges and undergoing a difficult political transition following civil unrest in 2011. Since 2007, State, DOD, and USAID have allocated over $1 billion in assistance to help Yemen counter AQAP and address other challenges. The three largest U.S. assistance programs in Yemen are USAID’s Food for Peace program, which has provided emergency food aid, and DOD’s Section 1206 and 1207(n) programs, which have provided training and equipment to Yemeni security forces. In response to a Senate report that directed GAO to review U.S. assistance to Yemen, and following up on GAO’s February 2012 report on the types and amounts of such assistance, GAO examined (1) the extent of progress made toward U.S. strategic goals for Yemen, (2) the extent of progress made by the Food for Peace and Section 1206 and 1207(n) programs, and (3) key challenges to U.S. assistance efforts. GAO reviewed agency documents and met with U.S. and Yemeni officials and implementing partners in Washington, D.C., and Sana’a, Yemen.
A Final Report From the Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction culminates SIGIR's nine-year mission overseeing Iraq's reconstruction.
An overview of the negotiation between the Colombian government and FARC guerrilla group that began in 2012.
Because the trends in the overall violent crime rate may not be indicative of trends in drug trafficking-related violent crimes, CRS is unable to develop fact-based conclusions about trends in drug trafficking-related violence spilling over from Mexico into the United States.
GAO's analysis of data for southwest border counties with sufficiently complete data show that, generally, both violent and property crimes were lower in 2011 than in 2004
Border Patrol is developing performance goals and measures to define border security and the resources needed to achieve it, but has not identified milestones and time frames for developing and implementing goals and measures under its new strategic plan
Given the uncertainty and the subjective judgments involved in modeling risk, policymakers may struggle to reach a consensus on border priorities. Nonetheless, a systematic approach to studying border threats may help clarify the types of policy tradeoffs lawmakers
confront at the border.
GAO looks at some Defense Department-budget security assistance programs in terms of "setting clear goals and defining terminology," "coordinating activities and sharing information," and "sustaining efforts and evaluating progress."
An accounting of how much the State Department had spent on the CARSI program, which provides both military/police and economic/institution-building assistance to Central America.
An accounting of how much the State Department had spent on the CARSI program, which provides both military/police and economic/institution-building assistance to Central America.
GAO is recommending that State take steps to improve its financial monitoring of implementing partners and provide clear guidance for approving subpartners. State concurred with GAO’s recommendations and cited steps they are taking to address them
A look at U.S. relations with Mexico at the beginning of Enrique Peña Nieto's presidency.
According to State officials, authorities that require the concurrence of the Secretary of State are reviewed by all of the department's relevant experts and bureaus, and thus have the best chance of identifying and considering the potential for unintended consequences
A federal advisory committee's "effort to review current U.S. approaches to security capacity building, its goals, and its effectiveness." Does not represent official U.S. government positions or policies.
GAO found migration down, and drug seizures rising, at the border. It recommends "that CBP ensure Border Patrol develops milestones and time frames for developing border security goals and measures to assess progress made and resource needs."
U.S. Customs and Border Protection needs better systems to weed out corruption and misconduct. Most cases since 2005 have been detected at the U.S.-Mexico border, the report says.
A review of how the Defense Security Cooperation Agency processes and delivers security assistance to other nations.
An overview of politics, security, U.S. relations with, and U.S. aid to El Salvador.
The Defense Department's declaration of its policy priorities toward the entire hemisphere.