Defense Threat Reduction Agency
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Defense Threat Reduction Agency (or DTRA) is an agency within the United States Department of Defense (DoD) created "to safeguard America and its interests from weapons of mass destruction (chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear, and high explosives) by reducing the threat and providing quality tools and services." DTRA's main functions are threat reduction, threat control, combat support, and technology development. The agency is headquartered in Fort Belvoir, Virginia. DTRA employs 2,000 civilian and military personnel at more than 14 locations around the world, including Russia, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, Uzbekistan, Georgia, and Ukraine.
DTRA was founded in 1998 by consolidating several DoD organizations, including the Defense Special Weapons Agency (successor to the Defense Nuclear Agency) and the On-Site Inspection Agency.
DTRA's vision is "to make the world safer by reducing the threat of weapons of mass destruction."
Contents |
[edit] Evolution after the Cold War
After the end of the Cold War, DTRA and its predecessor agencies have implemented the DoD aspects of several treaties that assist former Eastern Bloc countries in the destruction of Soviet era nuclear, biological, and chemical (NBC) weapons sites (such as missile silos and plutonium production facilities) in an attempt to avert potential weapons proliferation in the post-Soviet era as part of the Nunn-Lugar Cooperative Threat Reduction program.
DTRA is also responsible for reducing the threat of conventional war, especially in Europe, by participating in various arms control treaties to which the United States is a party, such as the Conventional Forces in Europe treaty and the Treaty on Open Skies.
On January 6, 2005, the director of DTRA was given the extra responsibility of the director of the USSTRATCOM Center for Combating Weapons of Mass Destruction (SCC WMD), a subordinate component to the United States Strategic Command (USSTRATCOM).
[edit] Enterprises and Directorates
DTRA's structure is based on enterprise areas, which include directorates. The three main enterprises are Combating Weapons of Mass Destruction, Operations, and Research & Development. The Business Enterprise also exists to support acquisition excellence and financial management within the organization. The Operations Enterprise includes the Combat Support Directorate, the Cooperative Threat Reduction Directorate, and the On-Site Inspection Directorate. The Research & Development Enterprise houses the Chemical the Biological Technologies Directorate, the Nuclear Technologies Directorate, the Counter WMD Technologies Directorate, and the Systems Engineering Technologies Directorate.
DTRA sponsors the journal WMD Insights.
[edit] External links
- DTRALink, the official web site of the Defense Threat Reduction Agency
- CNTTR, The Center for NBC Threats, Technology Transfer, and Resources of the Defense Threat Reduction Agency
- ACE Center, The Assessment of Catastrophic Events Center of the Defense Threat Reduction Agency
- Defense's Nuclear Agency, 1947 – 1997, DTRA History Series
- Creating the Defense Threat Reduction Agency, DTRA History Series
- WMD Insights, DTRA supported journal
[edit] See also
- USSTRATCOM Center for Combating Weapons of Mass Destruction
- United States Strategic Command
- National Counterproliferation Center
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
