In an age of instant, global communications, precision weapons and scores of threats to National Security, US Intelligence must balance the demand to provide strategic decision advantage at the highest levels of government and defense, while also providing our operational forces the warning, targeting and planning support required to defeat our nation’s enemies and protect our citizens. It is important to openly discuss how well US Intelligence is doing in achieving this balance. In this session, former and current defense and intelligence leaders will discuss whether US Intelligence is over-focused on national customers or under-supporting operational forces, and whether it is at, or beyond, the limits of its capacity to support all customers.
Focus Questions:
Are we keeping up with the demand for quantity and quality of intelligence for our National, theater and tactical customers for warning, targeting, S&TI and planning intelligence resources? What feedback are we getting from our customers?
Are we adequately resourcing the delivery of intelligence to support both strategic and tactical efforts against all of our disparate counter terrorism challenges? What specific investments are needed at the national level? The tactical level?
Has the IC’s understandable focus on support to counterterrorism and theater military operations eroded its ability to address more traditional nation-state targets such as Russia and China? Have we lost expertise we once had?