From the Executive Branch perspective, the case of the withdrawal from Afghanistan surfaced several issues that highlighted broader technology weaknesses across agencies. The U.S. State Department had several technology and process weaknesses including its distribution of easily duplicated airport visas for those eligible to evacuate the country3, and an inability to adequately track how many Americans were in the country4. Most of the immigration cases referred to the State Department from Congress, families, or other entities were being sent via email to one email inbox at the State Department. Additionally, utilizing a variety of tools and technologies, an informal network of volunteers assisted the U.S. government and non-government organizations in evacuating, relocating, and providing aid to roughly 124,000 people including 6,000 Americans. For volunteers to rapidly use open-source technology to quickly do what the State Department struggled to do at the time, presents a new challenge for the future of U.S. diplomacy and national security. Almost two months after the withdrawal, Secretary Blinken would acknowledge this fact in a public speech on the importance of modernizing the State Department’s technology, communications, and analytical capabilities. He also focused on the necessity of equipping the agency to address cybersecurity and emerging technology threats to meet 21st-century challenges.5
Enhancing Government Capacity through a Department of Technology and Innovation Historically, U.S. executive branch agencies have been created in response to a crisis and the effort usually reflected the balance of power in the U.S. economy at the time. The Department of Agriculture was established by President Abraham Lincoln during the Civil War when Agriculture represented a large percentage of the U.S. economy. Agriculture currently represents .5 percent of GDP, while the technology sector represents approximately 8 percent of GDP. Part II of this report recommends the 3
Impelli, Matthew. American Trapped in Kabul Explains Bogus Visa Email Sent to thousands,” August 20, 2021. https://www.newsweek.com/american-trapped-kabul-explains-bogus-visa-email-sent-thousandsbrain-worms-1621668
4
This is largely due to a challenging F-77 process. In 2007, the GAO noted that the U.S. State Department had conducted 270 evacuations since 1988, two years after the first Omnibus Diplomatic Security and Antiterrorism Act of 1986 (P.L. 99-399) created a legal obligation for the Secretary of State to evacuate US citizens during crises. The issues identified in that report have not been revisited by Congress since.
5
Remarks, “Secretary Antony J. Blinken on the Modernization of American Diplomacy,” October 27, 2021. https://www.state.gov/secretary-antony-j-blinken-on-the-modernization-of-american-diplomacy/
Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs | Harvard Kennedy School
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