Index

Department of Defense
No. 264-M
MEMORANDUM FOR CORRESPONDENTS
September 18, 1992

Don Atwood, Deputy Secretary of Defense, today announced the declassification of the existence of the National Reconnaissance Office, as recommended by the Director of Central Intelligence. The following information about the Office was declassified:

There is a National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) organized as an agency of the Department of Defense and funded through a program known as the National Reconnaissance Program (NRP), which is the single, national program to meet U.S, Goveminent intelligence needs through spaceborne and assigned airborne reconnaissance.

The mission of the NRO is to ensure that the U.S. has the technology and spaceborne and airborne assets needed to acquire intelligence world-wide, including to support such functions as monitoring of arms control agreements, indications and warning and the planning and conduct of military operations. The NRO accomplishes this mission through research and development, acquisition, and operation of spaceborne and airborne data collection systems.

The Secretary of Defense has the ultimate responsibility, which is exercised in concert with the Director of Central Intelligence, for management and operation of the NRO, and the Director of the NRO reports directly to the Secretary. The Director of Central Intelligence establishes the collection priorities and requirements for the targeting of NRP operations and the frequency of coverage, approves along with the Secretary of Defense the NRP budget, provides security policy guidance for the NRP, and guides and participates in the formulation of the NRP through the Director of the NRO. The Director of the NRO has responsibility for executing the NRO's programs, which the Director accomplishes through the Department of Defense and the Central Intelligence Agency.

The Director of the NRO is Martin C. Faga. The Deputy Director of the NRO is Mr. Jimmie D. Hill. The Deputy Director of NRO for Military Support is Rear Admiral Daniel P. March, USN.

The address for the NRO is:

No other information relating to the National Reconnaissance Office was declassified.

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