BU Now » CIA

Karzai aide linked to CIA

Dick Taffe — Thu, 26 Aug 2010 19:47:07 +0000

The New York Times reports that a key aid to Afghan President Hamid Karzai is on the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency payroll and has been for years. The aide, Mohammed Zia Salehi, is the chief of administration for the Afghanistan National Security Council and is at the center of a politically sensitive corruption investigation. International relations Professor Arthur Hulnick, a 35-year veteran of the intelligence profession, mostly with the CIA, says relationships the agency develops overseas inevitably include some people of questionable character.

“But that’s how the agency finds out what’s happening. Too bad that people who understand intelligence — and the New York Times reporters certainly do – -still spin the story to make it appear that the CIA is somehow ‘evil.’ They know better, even while the public is misled.”

Contact Arthur Hulnick, 617-353-8978, ahulnick@bu.edu

Alleged terror plotters arrested

Dick Taffe — Thu, 08 Jul 2010 22:15:21 +0000

Norwegian authorities said three men suspected of having links to Al Qaeda in a terrorism conspiracy linked to plots in the United States and Britain were arrested, two in Norway and one in Germany, thanks to help from American intelligence agencies. International relations Professor Joseph Wippl, a 30-year CIA operations officer, said the arrests again reflect that success against international terrorism will occur mostly through international cooperation between security services.

“Since 9/11, divergent countries with often divergent interests have arrested hundreds of terrorists. Almost all the arrests were the result of security service cooperation.”

Contact Joseph Wippl, 617-353-8992, jwippl@bu.edu

Fallout from Russian spy-ring bust

Dick Taffe — Wed, 30 Jun 2010 22:16:27 +0000

Even as his government acknowledged that its citizens were among the 11 people that U.S. authorities charged were part of a long-running spy operation, Russian Prime Minister Putin criticized U.S. law enforcement for busting up the espionage ring. International relations Professor Joseph Wippl, a 30-year CIA veteran, says Russia has continued a robust intelligence collection program since the break up of the Soviet Union, believing that relations between countries and regions can and will change.

“Good relations can become poor relations. Neutral relations can develop into hostile relations. For Russia, intelligence is not about countries that are hostile but about countries that are important.”

Contact Joseph Wippl, 617-353-8992, jwippl@bu.edu

Alleged Russian espionage ring busted

Dick Taffe — Tue, 29 Jun 2010 20:40:27 +0000

The FBI arrested 11 people for allegedly spying for the Russians while living secret lives in American communities – from Washington, D.C., to Seattle – sent here years ago to infiltrate U.S. society and steal its secrets. It’s unclear what the alleged spies actually found. Two BU international relations professors, Arthur Hulnick and Joseph Wippl, are both long-time veterans of the CIA and quite familiar with the world of spies. They offer their thoughts on the big bust.

Hulnick: “The case demonstrates that the FBI is really good at uncovering such spy rings. I’m not sure what will happen to the Russians who have devoted so much time and effort to what appears to be a failed operation. I suspect the Russian government will deny that it is behind the operation.”

Wippl: “Unlike diplomats, none of the 11 has diplomatic immunity which would result in a PNG (Persona Non Grata) expulsion from the U.S. Without diplomatic immunity, they will be prosecuted in a U.S. court according to the charges brought against them.”

Contact Arthur Hulnick, 617-353-8978, hlnk@aol.com, or Joseph Wippl, 617-353-8992, jwippl@bu.edu

Report: Burma developing nuke

Dick Taffe — Mon, 07 Jun 2010 17:16:55 +0000

Smuggled evidence shows Burma’s military rulers are secretly acquiring components for a nuclear weapons program, though it appears the impoverished nation is many years away from developing an actual bomb. Political science Professor Joseph Wippl, a 30-year career CIA officer, says the report developed by the dissident group Democratic Voice of Burma, again shows the need for accurate intelligence collection.

“There is no country so unimportant or so isolated as not to require intelligence and U.S. intelligence community expertise on that country or region.”

Contact Joseph Wippl, 617-353-8992, jwippl@bu.edu

Secret U.S. military ops in MidEast

Dick Taffe — Tue, 25 May 2010 18:58:31 +0000

The New York Times reports that Gen. David Patraeus, the top American commander in the Middle East, has ordered a broad expansion of clandestine military activity across the region in an effort to disrupt militant groups or counter threats. International Relations Professor Joseph Wippl, director of the BU Center for International Relations and a 30-year CIA operations officer, says the U.S. Armed Forces and the CIA have always had different areas of responsibility and he presumes Defense Secretary Gates knows the boundaries.

“The problem is balancing, on the one hand, the need for tactical intelligence to defend the United States with, on the other hand, the temptation to engage needlessly with U.S. military forces.”

Contact Joseph Wippl, 617-353-8992, jwippl@bu.edu

CIA head okayed ’05 video distruction

Dick Taffe — Fri, 16 Apr 2010 21:48:53 +0000

A newly released document shows that, although he didn’t okay it in advance, then CIA Director Porter Goss in 2005 approved of the decision to destroy dozens of videotapes of brutal interrogations of terrorism detainees. International Relations Professor Joseph Wippl, a 30-year CIA operation officer, asks if the tapes were destroyed to protect CIA personnel doing the interrogations or to protect the CIA from its Abu Gharib moment?

“Like the Nixon [Watergate] tapes, once done on the record, it cannot be undone without serious repercussions.”

Contact Joseph Wippl, 617-353-8992, jwippl@bu.edu

U.S. cyberattacks CIA Web site

Dick Taffe — Fri, 19 Mar 2010 16:46:01 +0000

The Washington Post reports the U.S. military cyberattacked and shut down a joint Saudi-CIA Web site which had been set up to uncover terror plots in Saudi Arabia. The military said it was putting Americans at risk. International relations Professor Joseph Wippl, a 30-year CIA operations officer, says the shutdown could have been more tactful by informing the Saudis, but it’s not a surprise.

“The military will always expose any clandestine operation and ignore consequences to the operation if U.S. lives could be in jeopardy. It’s the gorilla in the room.”

Contact Joseph Wippl, 617-353-8992, jwippl@bu.edu

Taliban leader’s capture confirmed

Dick Taffe — Wed, 17 Feb 2010 20:58:08 +0000

Pakistan has confirmed the capture of the Taliban’s top military commander, the result of a joint effort by Pakistani and U.S. intelligence agencies. International Relations Professor Joseph Wippl, a 30-year CIA operations officer, said it highlights the need for such joint enterprises.

“The capture of Mullah Abdu Ghani Baradar demonstrates once again that the success of operations against terrorism will occur only through the cooperation of intelligence services either bilaterally or on a multilateral basis. Success against terrorism on a unilateral basis is and will continue to be very limited.”

Contact Joseph Wippl, 617-353-8992, jwippl@bu.edu

Critics question CIA moonlighting

Dick Taffe — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 22:21:01 +0000

Concerned it may lead to security breaches, Senate Intelligence Committee Chairwoman Dianne Feinstein wants to learn more about a CIA policy that allows agency employees to moonlight for private companies. But international relations Professor Arthur Hulnick, a 3-decade CIA veteran, says there’s no need to worry — any agency officers moonlighting are working on non-intelligence related activities.

“Each and every activity is reviewed, and periodically re-reviewed. I’m surprised that Sen. Feinstein doesn’t know about this practice.”

Contact Arthur Hulnick, 617-353-8978, ahulnick@bu.edu