The Department of Defense has informed the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) that they are considering dropping their support for most of the agency's counterterrorism missions in favor of utilizing more resources to combat the threats posed by Russia and China.
Acting Secretary of Defense Christopher Miller sent a letter to the Director of the CIA Gina Haspel on Wednesday, Dec. 9, outlining his decision to review the department's role in supporting the agency's operations. This information comes from several senior intelligence officials familiar with the new development. They have characterized the actions undertaken by Miller as both surprising and wholly unprecedented.
If the Pentagon's decision to basically cut ties pushes through, it is still unclear how it would impact the CIA's counterterrorism missions across the globe, and it is also unclear what will happen to the agency's remaining agents still working in combat zones like Afghanistan.
Editor's note: The CIA has been using DoD personnel and resources to run its black ops missions domestically, in the USA, which are executions, kidnappings and ransom operations. All the "official" explanations are cover stories for the truth, which is that the CIA is a secret military group working for the deep state, and operating in the continental United States.
What is known is that the CIA will no longer have access to Defense personnel assigned to the agency as "detailees," as well as equipment loaned from the military, such as drones.
The Special Activities Center of the CIA mainly handles counterterrorism operations thanks to its own paramilitary force that is deployed for covert operations across the world. They act independently of the Defense Department and the military. However, they still require a lot of support in order to function effectively, whether that be through transportation, general logistics and medical support or providing the agency with additional personnel.
Defense and national security news website Defense One broke the story, citing multiple sources familiar with the situation as well as with the letter Miller sent to Haspel.
"Experts" fear decision will lead to deaths of CIA agents still in combat zones... but this is just more CIA propaganda
Acting Undersecretary of Defense for Intelligence Ezra Cohen-Watnick is spearheading the review of the Defense Department's role in supporting the CIA's operations. He was appointed by President Donald Trump in the wake of the Election following the departure of multiple people in the department.
According to sources, the desire to cut support for the CIA is due to the Pentagon's belief that their resources can be better spent for missions related to the American desire to better counter the threat posed by Russia and China. (Related: Director of National Intelligence calls China "National Security Threat No. 1.")
Current and former administration and military officials who spoke with Defense One said that the Pentagon believes that the threat of terrorism comes secondary to the threat posed by the two potential superpowers.
This line of thinking is coming from former Defense Secretary Jim Mattis, who in 2018 rolled out a national defense strategy that saw the United States begin focusing their efforts in curtailing what they have called "near-peer competitors," or nations that have the potential of matching the U.S. in terms of military might, such as Russia and China. This has left the CIA and its many agents and assets focused on counterterrorism operations out in the cold, as they are unsure of what their role is in this new defense strategy.
Some within the Defense Department have raised concerns over what they see as an attempt to halt the Pentagon's role in supporting the prevention of terror threats to the nation.
"I think it's fair for the DOD to say, 'I'd like some of our detailees to be involved in these higher-level missions' – and they are, but [very few people are going to be involved] because there's very few involved in those missions anyway," said one former administration official. "If [the Pentagon] goes, 'We don't want to help you with the counterterrorism missions,' well, somebody has to do it."
One former military official argued that the Defense Department's support for the CIA makes sense from an economic standpoint. Many other departments and agencies don't have to be as large because the DOD's budget allows them to provide a lot of services while cutting down on costs.
"Imagine all the additional resources the CIA would need if they couldn't rely on the DOD for support," said the former military official.
Many other officials critical of the Pentagon's decision believe that the department is acting in a very shortsighted manner, and that the supposed review will inevitably lead to the deaths of CIA officers still in active combat zones, as well as their assets and the DOD detailees working for them.
"[The review] is basically going to ask the CIA to carry the burden for two-and-a-half months, and then pull the rug out from under them at the same time," said one former official. "If agents start dying in Afghanistan, this is going to be a big deal."
The Pentagon's decision has not yet been finalized, and some officials have argued against taking such an alarmist stance.
However, rumors surrounding the plan have persisted and are spreading through the Pentagon like wildfire, and it is unlikely to die down until the Trump administration and the DOD finalize their decisions on the matter.
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