NSPDs were the policy instruments for conveying presidential decisions and guidance to the foreign policy and national security agencies during the administration of George W. Bush. President Bush also initiated the homeland security presidential directive (HSPD), which serves the same role in the homeland security area. Although classified, brief synopses of the NSPDs are available to the public. See also NATIONAL SECURITY DECISION DIRECTIVE; NATIONAL SECURITY DIRECTIVE; PRESIDENTIAL DECISION DIRECTIVE.
NATIONAL SECURITY THREAT LIST (NSTL). The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) established the National Security Threat List in 1991 to set out the bureau’s foreign counterintelligence mission. It includes national security issues as well as a classified list of foreign powers that pose a strategic intelligence threat to U. S. security interests.
By creating the National Security Threat List, the FBI changed its approach from defending against hostile intelligence agencies to protecting U. S. information and technologies. It identified all countries — not just hostile intelligence services — that pose a continuing and serious intelligence threat to the United States. It also defined expanded threat issues, including the proliferation of chemical, biological, and nuclear weapons; the loss of critical technologies; and the improper collection of trade secrets and proprietary information. This portion of the list was developed in concert with the intelligence community (IC).
World History
