February 24, 2022
Was the US Gamble on Releasing Ukraine Intelligence Worth it?
The Biden administration's aggressive disclosure of intelligence information in recent weeks has not prevented Russian leader Vladimir Putin from launching a military assault on Ukraine, intended to cut short its nascent experiment with democracy.
But while releasing the intelligence may not have changed Putin's behavior, it very well may have changed the world's reaction to his current assault on democracy. The Russian President's attempts at obfuscation and deflection appear to have largely failed. And much of the international community sees his attack on an independent and free nation for what it is.
Indeed, the world's eyes have been opened to a despot's perverse plot to crush a sovereign nation every step of the muddied way.
Most importantly, everyone is on notice that this attack has been unprovoked and unjustified.
Looking back over the past several weeks, the crisis in Ukraine presented a need for diplomatic, military and economic decisions by the United States and its allies in Europe on a daily basis. To inform those decisions, policymakers have been relying on the foreign intelligence collection and analysis capabilities of the United States and its close partners.
In a departure from how modern presidents generally handle national security information, the US government made a significant amount of intelligence available in real time. In doing so, the intelligence community and the Biden administration have taken substantial risks.
Read the full article from CNN Opinion.
More from CNAS
-
Five “Blockades” and One Legal Problem: Naval Enforcement in the U.S.–Iran Conflict
Commentary
The Pentagon should clarify, with precision, the legal authorities underpinning each maritime enforcement action....
By Mark Nevitt
-
Masked and Anonymous
Commentary
David Aaron is a former Manhattan assistant district attorney and Department of Justice national security and cyber prosecutor. He is now in private practice at an AmLaw 50 la...
By David Aaron
-
Distinguishing Between Soldiers and Law Enforcement Officers
Commentary
Carrie F. Cordero is the Robert M. Gates senior fellow and director of the National Security Law Program at CNAS....
By Carrie Cordero
-
The Constitution’s Forgotten Term Limit on Military Power
Commentary
They designed the Two-Year Clause not as a technical appropriations rule but as a structural guarantee: that the army of the United States would remain, as one Federalist put ...
By Mark Nevitt & Matthew. B. Lawrence
