PROGRESS REPORT ON THE CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE GROUP

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP80R01731R001400110001-8
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: T
• Document Page Count: 11
• Document Creation Date: December 14, 2016
• Document Release Date: December 13, 2002
• Sequence Number: 1
• Publication Date: June 7, 1946
• Content Type: REPORT

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PROGRESS REPORT
ON THE
CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE GROUP
Memorandum Submitted To
THE NATIONAL INTELLIGENCE AUTHORITY
by
Rear Admiral Sidney W. Souers, USNR
Director of Central Intelligence
Dated 7 June 1946
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7 June 1946
MEMORANDUM FOR THE NATIONAL INTELLIGENCE AUTHORITY
SUBJECT: Progress Report on the Central Intelligence Group
ESTABLISHMENT
The Central Intelligence Group was officially acti-
vated on 8 February 1946 pursuant to the approval of N.I.A. Di-
rective No. 2. Actually, a small group of personnel from the
State, War, and Navy-Departments had been assembled beginning
on 25 January, three days after the President signed the letter
directing the establishment of the National Intelligence Au-
thority.
2. ORGANIZATION
The Central Intelligence Group has been organized. in
accordance with N.I.A. Directive No 2. The major components
at the present time are the Central Planning Staff, charged with
planning the coordination of intelligence activities, and the
Central Reports Staff, responsible for the production of na-
tional policy intelligence. A Chief of Operational Services,
with a small staff, has been designated as a nucleus from which
an organization to perform services of common concern may be
built. A small Secretariat to serve the National Intelligence
A utho rit y, the Central Intelligence Group, and the Intelligence
Advisory Board, has been created. The Administrative Division
consists of an Administrative Officer, a Security Officer, a
Personnel officer, and a small group of trained personnel to
Provide necessary administrative services for the Central Intel-
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3. PERSONNEL
Personnel for C.I.G. has been requested and selected
on the principle that only the most experienced individuals in
each field of intelligence activity should be utilized in this
vital preliminary period. The responsible officers in the De-
partments have cooperated wholeheartedly toward this end. How=
ever, the procurement of C.I.G. personnel has necessarily been
a rather slow process, in view of the demobilization and the
fact that C.I.G. and departmental requirements for qualified
individuals naturally had to be reconciled in many specific
cases. The present status of C.I.G. personnel is shown in
the following tabulation:
STATE
Actual Auth.
[WAR
Actual Auth.
NAVY
Actual Auth.
TOTAL
Actual Auth.
Central Reports Staff
Central Planning Staff
Administrative Division
TOTAL
Accepted but not yet
assigned to C.I.G.
TOTAL
% of Authorized
49% --- 1
57% -- 1
42%
51% --
Includes Office of Director,. Secretariat, and Chief of Operational Services.
"Auth," - Authorized by N.I.A. Directive No. 2
"A" - Personnel assigned by A-2
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It may be seen that the organization of the Central
Planning Staff has been given priority, since effective plan-
ning is considered a necessary prelude to accomplishment of
the C.I.G. mission. Concentration is now placed on manning
the Central Reports Staff. The need for filling positions in
the Administrative Division has been largely alleviated by
the part-time use of the personnel and facilities of the Stra-
tegic Services Unit, although this Division will require re-
inforcement when centralized operations are undertaken.
A development of great importance regarding person-
nel has been the designation of specially qualified consult-
ants to the Director of Central Intelligence. An outstanding
scientist with wide intelligence experience,
is Senior Scientific Consultant to the Director.
Arrangements are well advanced for the designation ofJ
George F. Kennan, recently Charge d'Affaires in Moscow and a
Foreign Service Officer with a distinguished career, as Spe-
cial Consultant to the Director, particularly on U.S.S.R. af-
fairs.
4. ACTIVITIES
The activities of the Central Intelligence Group to
date have been characterized principally by the administrative
details of organization, the consideration of urgent problems,
and the basic planning for a sound future intelligence program.
Basic policies and procedures regarding the organization have
been established. Urgent problems in the intelligence field,
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especially as regards certain vital operations, have been
carefully studied and appropriate action has been or is ready
to be taken. Substantial progress has been made in the anal-
ysis of long-range intelligence problems. The throes of ini-
tial organization and planning are, therefore, generally past,
and the time for initiation of centralized intelligence oper-
ations has now been reached.
Coordination of Intelligence Activities. Beginning
on 12 February 1946, four days after the activation of C.I.G.,
the C.I,G. has been receiving numerous suggestions or recom-
mendations for studies leading to the effective coordination
of Federal intelligence activities. A number of other studies
of this type have been initiated by C.I.G. These problems
generally fall into three categories; (a) problems for which
partial but inadequate solutions were evolved during the war;
(b) problems which existing Governmental machinery was unable
to solve or incapable of solving; and (c) problems which re-
quired new solutions in the light of the post-hostilities sit-
uation.
Some of these problems, particularly in the third
category, require urgent interim solution. Among these prob-
lems for which interim solutions have been evolved or initi-
ated are the liquidation of the Strategic Services Unit, the
development of intelligence on the U.S.S.R., and the coordina-
tion of scientific intelligence.
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vanced include the following:
a. Provision for monitoring press and propa-
ganda broadcasts of foreign powers.
b. Provision for coordinating the acquisition
of foreign publications.
c. Coordination of collection of intelligence
information.
d. Coordination of intelligence research.
e. Essential elements of information.
f. Provision for collecting foreign intelligence
information by clandestine methods.
.E. Intelligence on foreign industrial establish-
ments.
h. Interim study of the collection of intel-
ligence information in China.
i. Central Register of Intelligence Information.
Projects which are in various stages of study or
planning cover the following additional subjects;
a. Disposition of files of the U.S. Strategic
Bombing Survey.
b. Censorship planning.
c. Intelligence terminology.
d. Resources potential program.
e. Application of sampling techniques to intel-
ligence.
f. Survey of coverage of the foreign language
press in the United States.
Intelligence on foreign petroleum develop-
ments.
h. Coordination of geographical and related in-
telligence.
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i.. Disposition of the Publications Review Sub-
committee of the Joint Intelligence Com-
mittee.
j. Survey of the Joint Intelligence Study Pub-
lishing Board.
k. Disposition of the photographic intelligence
file in the Department of State.
1. Coordinated utilization of private research
in the social sciences.
in. Index of U.S. residents of foreign intelli-
gence potential.
n.
o. Planning for psychological warfare.
p. Utilization of the services of proposed
One of the functions of C.I.G. which has assumed
great importance is the support of adequate budgets for Depart-
mental intelligence. Coordinated representation to the Bureau
of the Budget and the Congress, of the budgetary requirements
for intelligence activities, promises to be one of the most
effective means for guarding against arbitrary depletion of
intelligence resources at the expense of national security.
So long as the C.I.G. is dependent upon the Departments for
budgetary support, however, its authority to speak as an un-
biased guardian of the national security will be suspect and
therefore not wholly effective.
Production of National Policy Intelligence. Pursu-
ant to N.I.A. Directive No. 2, the Central Reports Staff con-
centrated on the production of a factual Daily Summary, the
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the first issue of which was dated 13 February. Although this
Summary covered operational as well as intelligence matters
and involved no C.I.G. interpretation, it has served to keep
the C.I.G. personnel currently advised of developments and
formed a basis for consideration of future intelligence re-
ports.
Despite the undermanned condition of the Central Re-
ports Staff, the urgent need for a Weekly Summary has resulted
in the decision to produce the first issue-on 14 June. Until
adequately staffed in all geographic areas, however, this pub-
lication will concentrate on those areas for which qualified
personnel is now available. The concept of this Weekly Sum-
mary is that it should concentrate on significant trends of
events supplementing the normal intelligence produced by the
Departments. Procedures are being developed to'ensure that
the items contained therein reflect the best judgment of qual-
ified personnel in C.I.G. and the Departments.
The primary function of C.I.G. in the production of
intelligence, however, will be the preparation and dissemina-
tion of definitive estimates of the capabilities and intentions
of foreign countries as they affect the national security of
the United States. The necessity of assigning the best quali-
fied and carefully selected personnel to this vital task has
delayed its initiation. Solution of the relationship of this
C.I.G. activity to the Departments, the State-War-Navy Coordi-
nating Committee, the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and other agencies
concerned with the national security, has also been deferred
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pending the procurement of adequate personnel. This procure-
ment has now been given priority, and it is anticipated that
the Central Reports Staff will be prepared to produce national
policy intelligence at an early date.
Performance of Centralized Operational Services. The
operation of central services by the C.I.G. has been considered
to be a subject requiring careful study to ensure that Depart-
mental operations are not impeded or unnecessarily duplicated.
The urgent need for central direction of the activities and
liquidation of the Strategic Services Unit was recognized by
the N.I.A. and an arrangement was effected whereby this Unit
is operated by the War Department under directives from the
Director of Central Intelligence. This arrangement temporarily
provided C.T.G. with facilities for direct collection of re-
quired information but is admittedly only a stop-gap measure.
C.I.G. planning and organization has now progressed
to the point where firm recommendations may be made for C.I.G
operation of intelligence services which can be more efficient-
ly accomplished centrally. Among those operations under con-
sideration as C.I.G. activities are:
a. Monitoring press and propaganda broadcasts
of foreign powers.
b. Collection of foreign intelligence informa-
tion by clandestine methods.
c. Production of static intelligence studies
of foreign areas, to replace Joint Army-
Navy Intelligence Studies (JANIS).
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d. Establishment of a Central Register of In-
telligence Information.
e. Basic research and analysis of intelligence
subjects of common interest to all Depart-
ments, such as economics, geography, sociol-
ogy, biographical data, etc.
In the consideration of performance by C.I.G. of cen-
tral operations, however, the administrative, budgetary and
legal difficulties of the present organization have presented
real problems. The reduction of Departmental funds and person-
nel for intelligence activities have made it difficult for De-'
partments, despite their desire to cooperate, to furnish the
necessary facilities to C.I.G. The inability of C.I.G. to re-
cruit personnel directly from civilian life, and the adminis-
trative complications of procuring personnel from the Depart-
ments, are likely to jeopardize. effective conduct of C.I.G.
operations. The lack of enabling legislation making the C.I.G.
a legal entity has made it impossible to negotiate contracts
which are required for many operations, such as the monitoring
of foreign broadcasts.
CONCLUSIONS
a. The present organizational relationship between
the National Intelligence Authority, the Central Intelligence
Group, and the Intelligence Advisory Board is sound.
b. The initial organizational and planning phase
of C.I.G. activities has been completed and the operation of
centralized intelligence services should be undertaken by
C.I.G. at the earliest practicable date.
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c. The National Intelligence Authority and the Cen-
tral Intelligence Group should obtain enabling legislation
and an independent budget as soon as possible, either as part
of a new national defense organization or as a separate agency,
in order that (1) urgently needed central intelligence oper-
ations may be effectively and efficiently conducted by the
Central Intelligence Group, and (2) the National Intelligence
Authority and the Central Intelligence Group will have the
necessary authority and standing to develop, support, co-
ordinate and direct an adequate Federal intelligence program
for the national security.
SIDNEY W. SOUERS
Director
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