The Foreign Service Journal, February 2013

12 FEBRUARY 2013 | THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL Learning from Benghazi O n Dec. 19, AFSA issued a state- ment commending the compre- hensive Accountability Review Board report on the tragic events of Sept. 11, 2012, when four U.S. officials, including Ambassador Chris Stevens, were killed at the special mission in Benghazi, Libya. The full text of the unclassified ver- sion of the ARB report is available on State’s Web site (www.state.gov). Here are its 24 key recommendations, all of which the Obama administration has pledged to implement: 1. The Department [of State] must strengthen security for personnel and platforms beyond traditional reliance on host government security support in high-risk, high-threat posts. The depart- ment should urgently review the proper balance between acceptable risk and expected outcomes in high-risk, high- threat areas. While the answer cannot be to refrain from operating in such environments, the department must do so on the basis of having: 1) a defined, attainable and prioritized mission; 2) a clear-eyed assessment of the risk and costs involved; 3) a commitment of suf- ficient resources to mitigate these costs and risks; 4) an explicit acceptance of those costs and risks that cannot be mitigated; and 5) constant attention to changes in the situation, including when to leave and perform the mis- sion from a distance. The United States must be self-reliant and enterprising in developing alternate security plat- forms, profiles and staffing footprints to address such realities. Assessments must be made on a case-by-case basis and repeated as circumstances change. 2. The Board recommends that the department re-examine [Bureau of Diplomatic Security] organization and management, with a particular empha- sis on span of control for security policy planning for all overseas U.S. diplomatic facilities. In this context, the recent creation of a new Diplomatic Security Deputy Assistant Secretary for High- Threat Posts could be a positive first step if integrated into a sound strategy for DS reorganization. 3. As the president’s personal rep- resentative, the chief of mission bears “direct and full responsibility for the security of [his or her] mission and all the personnel for whom [he or she is] responsible,” and thus for risk manage- ment in the country to which he or she is accredited. In Washington, each regional assistant secretary has a cor- responding responsibility to support the chief of mission in executing this duty. Regional bureaus should have aug- mented support within the bureau on security matters, to include a senior DS officer to report to the regional assistant secretary. 4. The department should establish a panel of outside independent experts (military, security, humanitarian) with experience in high-risk, high-threat areas to support DS, identify best prac- tices (from other agencies and other countries), and regularly evaluate U.S. security platforms in high-risk, high- threat posts. The department needs to review the staffing footprints at high-risk, high-threat posts, with particular attention to ensuring adequate Locally Employed Staff and management support. TALKING POINTS Attack on the U.S. compound in Benghazi, Libya, on Sept. 11, 2012. STR/AFP/Getty Image