3 chapters across the catalog
Antony Blinken became the first U.S. Secretary of State to visit Niger, focusing on security in the Sahel and countering the influence of the Wagner Group. The region is home to massive uranium reserves, and the French company Orano is relaunching a major mining project using In-Situ Recovery (ISR) technology. Concerns are raised about the environmental impact of using chemicals to dissolve uranium underground.
Security Sector Assistance, Global Contractor Funding
President Obama issued an executive order delegating authority for "Security Sector Assistance" to Secretary of State John Kerry under Presidential Directive 23. This classified directive allows billions of dollars to flow to commercial contractors for military and civilian security operations globally. Funding is being directed to countries including Burkina Faso, Chad, and Libya for counter-terrorism, logistics, and surveillance capabilities.
Population-Centric ISR, Twitter Firehose, In-Q-Tel Investments
A report from the C4ISR Journal details how the Pentagon and CIA exploit social media as "unwitting sensors" through population-centric Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (ISR). Companies like Booz Allen and the CIA-funded In-Q-Tel are reportedly mining the "Twitter firehose" to create predictive tools for the Department of Defense.
