Transmittal of Memorandum to Major General Jack E. Thomas, USAF

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP82-00283R000200210045-4
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: S
• Document Page Count: 3
• Document Creation Date: December 9, 2016
• Document Release Date: September 28, 1998
• Sequence Number: 45
• Publication Date: November 29, 1966
• Content Type: MF

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m:,ontrol No. 4381
.IC-D-633/1
November 1966
+_ :; :i g~lRAND T ! FOP.' Members of the Economic Intelligence Committee
Transmittal of Memorandums to Major General
ac k E. Thomas, USAF
F , d for your inforoaation is one copy of the response to
General Thoira!,- USAF, with respect to the Department of the
proposa for tasking an EIC subcommittee with monitoring
uses of economic intelligence in military planning documents.
This memorandum reflects the views set forth in EIC-D-633,
Wxovem'~er 19b6, circulated for members concurrence with minor
: )ditification : ea ested by the DIA member.
25X1A9a
xecutive Secretary
=a.# ;seInT eni
witted
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 ' c:ur,crul No. 4376
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ECONOMIC INTELLIGENCE COMMITTEE
Za November 1966
MEMORANDUM PORE Major Gsneral Jack E. Thomas., USAF
Assistant Chief of Staff, Intelligence
headquarters United States Air Force
Vlashin ;tart, D. C.
UBJECT, Proposal for Tasking EIC Subcommittee with
Monitoring the Uses of Economic Intelligence
in Military Planning Documents
i. This memorandum is responsive to your request of 10 January
66 c neerning changes in the subcommittee structure of the :conomic
tel1i" ncc Comm ttee (EIC) and your recan~rnen~ ztion that consid r-
::..,:ion be given to tar,Ling an EIC subcommittee with monitorin the uses'
-:,: economic in_telli ;once in planning documents, par'~icuiar y :ose
conccr z :d with military planning. The objective would be to insure
Ohs ad.. aacy of the reporting on the reliability and validity of cost c'.-ita
fox -i' n military expenditures (particularly those of the USSR) and
at t . methodology used meets consumer needs.
2. '_c Chairman of the EIC, I referred this matter for considerati.,)n
?o the 3?SI Ad Hoc Working Group on Soviet Military Expcnditures for
IPP. The Working Group, presently consisting of repra:acntatives from
the Departments of State and the Air Force, the Defense Intelligence
Agency, the National Security Leency, and the Central Intelligence Agency,
have now submitted comments on this proposal.
3. : :g the review, the Group heard reports on hu v foreign
weapon J ,v+ and other forei,:;n economic data have been used in defense
,tudiees a.. ~ l planning clocumc t . C' rtain cases were notei where eco
noniic L.' :lligence apparcn LI i,ad been used without due r =acrd to its
:'_ nfiido.> :u limits or reliability. In a number of these ca is the mis-
? nderc I ndings may have ..Luii ed from inadequacies in the statements
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JI3. CT: x?'ro o aa1 for T~ making LIC Subcou mittee
of confidence and reliability. Other cases wearer noted where the
particular analytical technique utilize: by consumers is subject to
critics;m, rather than reflecting the questionablo accuracy ,:f the
rata 4eing used.
It. The w3/irking Group believes that it would be inappropriate
kor the IC to attempt to monitor all publications and studies prep:.rod
by the DOD or other departments or contractors which utilize ecoi. uthc
intetli ence. The physical rnagiritude of tho task alone would probably
Alake such an effort impractical. The matter is essentially one of the
interface between intelligence and planning within the various depart-
nicntrs. `isinte?rpretations of military economic intelligence 1a, planning
"re rnu&e likely to occur in policy documents that are not subject to
review by - and area typically not available to . the EIC. Also, because
t ho , .C r g ?-oor ibility lies grin airily in the area of cconon is ir.telli-once,
&A M-41.,y ir, tances it would not bo the r ,oft appropriate body is review
hews r. hi,tary publications.
S. Therefore the Working Group and the SIC boiieve that the ': IC
;hou1d not establisli a subcornmittee to monitor tbee uses of econorr..c
intelligence roports in military planning or policy documents. Th"M
EIC, h:Qwever, stands ready to assist in any specific instance of
apparent. nisinterpretaion which one of the rr ember agencies belicve::-i
would be a case appropriate for Committee action.
FOIAb3b
-' ,'iARD L. ALLEN
Chairman
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