The Foreign Service Journal, June 2006

Ambassadorial Authority: A “Continuing Discussion” The Special Operations Com- mand’s growing use of elite Special Ops troops in operations to combat terrorism outside of war zones such as Iraq and Afghanistan — operating in areas traditionally handled by the CIA and State Department — presents particular problems for ambassadors and heads of mission. We highlighted the issue in theMay Cybernotes (“Special Ops Crowding Out Diplomacy?”), citing a March 8 New York Times report on SOCOM’s public acknowledgement of the so- called Military Liaison Elements that have been placed in more than a dozen embassies in Africa, the Middle East, Southeast Asia and South America. According to that report, SOCOM officials say that the MLE teams are placed only upon approval by the local U.S. ambassador. However, a subsequent report in the April 23 Washington Post indi- cates that the situation is considerab- ly more murky ( http://washington post.com ). A ccording to the Post , State Department officials remain concerned over “gray areas” pertain- ing to the special ops teams’ status and how to maintain clear lines of authority. “Special Ops wants the flexibility and speed to go in there,” one official told the Post , “but there are understandably questions of how you do that and how you have clear lines of authority.” In a classified order last year, the Post reports, the Pentagon “gained the leeway to inform — rather than gain the approval of — the U.S. ambassador before conducting mili- tary operations in a foreign country.” A defense official familiar with the order told the Post , “We do not need ambassador-level approval.” There remains, one State Depart- ment official says, “continuing dis- cussion, to put it politely, in terms of how this is going to work.” Meanwhile, SOCOM’s budget has grown 60 percent since 2003, to $8 billion in FY 2007, to carry out its lead responsibility in the global war on ter- ror. To extend its reach to more coun- tries, the command is increasing the number of Special Operations troops to 13,000, including soldiers skilled in language and working with indige- nous militaries. With 7,000 troops deployed overseas today, SOCOM is already seeing its biggest deployments in history. — Susan Maitra C YBERNOTES Site of the Month: www.gdnet.org The Global Development Network is a “global network of research and pol- icy institutes working together to address the problems of national and region- al development.” Launched in 1999 as the result of World Bank-sponsored consultations among think-tanks from developing countries, GDN aims to gen- erate high-quality, policy-relevant research at the local level in developing and transitioning countries. As a live forum for scholars and researchers, particularly in the developing sector, to share their work and expertise, www.gdnet.org is a unique resource in the area of development research. A monthly newsletter features develop- ment-related news, such as upcoming conferences, competitions and projects. A quarterly opinion column called “Global Issues, Local Voices” features cur- rent work of regional scholars on critical issues. The results of GDN’s first glob- al research project, “Explaining Growth,” are available. The GDN Knowledge Base is a comprehensive portal to, among other things, development research produced in developing countries over the past three years, all of which is available free and accompanied by clear conclusion- based summaries. The Knowledge Base also contains information on develop- ment-related scholars and institutions. Online services also include access to information on sources of funding for research. Though most of the resources are open to all, some features of the site, such as submissions and research funding information, are available only to regis- tered users. There is no cost, but registration involves a somewhat complicat- ed process akin to setting up a job interview and is intended for professionals working in the field (i.e., those with previously published papers, or experience with a research institution). — Shawn Guan, Editorial Intern 10 F O R E I G N S E R V I C E J O U R N A L / J U N E 2 0 0 6