The Under Secretary for Arms Control and International Security Affairs (T) is a position within the U.S. Department of State that serves as Senior Adviser to the

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...

and the Secretary of State for Arms Control, Nonproliferation, and Disarmament. In this capacity, the Under Secretary (U/S) attends and participates, at the direction of the President, in National Security Council (NSC) and subordinate meetings pertaining to arms control, nonproliferation, and

disarmament Disarmament is the act of reducing, limiting, or abolishing weapons. Disarmament generally refers to a country's military or specific type of weaponry. Disarmament is often taken to mean total elimination of weapons of mass destruction, such as ...

and has the right to communicate, through the Secretary of State, with the President and members of the NSC on arms control, nonproliferation, and disarmament concerns. The U/S also leads the interagency policy process on nonproliferation and manages global U.S.

security policy Security policy is a definition of what it means to ''be secure'' for a system, organization or other entity. For an organization, it addresses the constraints on behavior of its members as well as constraints imposed on adversaries by mechanisms ...

, principally in the areas of nonproliferation, arms control, regional security and defense relations, and arms transfers and security assistance. The U/S provides policy direction in the following areas: nonproliferation, including the

missile In military terminology, a missile is a guided airborne ranged weapon capable of self-propelled flight usually by a jet engine or rocket motor. Missiles are thus also called guided missiles or guided rockets (when a previously unguided rocke ...

and nuclear areas, as well as chemical, biological, and conventional weapons proliferation; arms control, including negotiation, ratification, verification and compliance, and implementation of agreements on strategic, non-conventional, and conventional forces; regional security and defense relations, involving policy regarding U.S. security commitments worldwide as well as on the use of U.S.

military forces A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. It is typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with its members identifiable by their distinct ...

in unilateral or international peacekeeping roles; and arms transfers and security assistance programs and arms transfer policies. By delegation from the Secretary, the U/S performs a range of functions under the

Foreign Assistance Act The Foreign Assistance Act (, et seq.) is a United States law governing foreign aid policy. It outlined the political and ideological principles of U.S. foreign aid, significantly overhauled and reorganized the structure U.S. foreign assistance ...

Arms Export Control Act The Arms Export Control Act of 1976 (Title II of , codified at ) gives the President of the United States the authority to control the import and export of defense articles and defense services. The H.R. 13680 legislation was passed by the 94th ...

, and related legislation. The bureaus of International Security and Nonproliferation, Political-Military Affairs, and Arms Control, Verification, and Compliance are under the policy oversight of the Under Secretary for Arms Control and International Security. By statute, the Assistant Secretary for Arms Control, Verification, and Compliance reports to the Under Secretary for Arms Control and International Security. According to the Office of the Historian of the U.S. Department of State, the Under Secretary first received the permanent title "Senior Adviser to the President and the Secretary of State for Arms Control, Nonproliferation and Disarmament" when the Clinton administration decided to merge the Arms Control and Disarmament Agency and the

United States Information Agency The United States Information Agency (USIA), which operated from 1953 to 1999, was a United States agency devoted to " public diplomacy". In 1999, prior to the reorganization of intelligence agencies by President George W. Bush, President Bil ...

into the State Department, as well as realigning the

United States Agency for International Development The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) is an independent agency of the U.S. federal government that is primarily responsible for administering civilian foreign aid and development assistance. With a budget of over $27 b ...

with it.

List of Under Secretaries of State for International Security Affairs, 1972–1993

List of Under Secretaries of State for Arms Control and International Security, 1993–present

References

External links

The website of the Under Secretary for Arms Control and International Security

{{Under Secretary of State for Arms Control and International Security Affairs 1972 introductions Arms control people United States national security policy