Feral Jundi

Thursday, September 10, 2009

Industry Talk: State’s Inspector General Says Failed Oversight on Armor Group ‘Will Be Made Public’

Filed under: Afghanistan,Industry Talk — Tags: , , , , , — Matt @ 7:35 AM

    Great!  State has a lot of answering to do in regards to managing this thing, and I am glad to hear that the IG will be going to town on these clowns that exhibited such poor leadership and oversight.  I also hope that the State Department will have the guts to do what is right, and fire some folks as well.  Although I see that as a little bit tougher, because it is damn near impossible to fire anyone in government. –Matt

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State’s Inspector General Says Failed Oversight on ArmorGroup ‘Will Be Made Public’

By Spencer Ackerman

9/9/09

At a House Oversight subcommittee hearing on Afghanistan, the State Department’s inspector general, Howard Geisel, made his first public comments about ArmorGroup, the State Department security contractor accused of physical and sexual harassment. Rep. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.) asked Geisel, whose office has opened an investigation into the oversight of ArmorGroup’s contract to protect the U.S. embassy in Kabul, “who bears responsibility” for the company’s abuses.

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Tuesday, August 11, 2009

Publications: State Department Amends ITAR To Add Temporary Export Exemption for Body Armor

Filed under: Gear Review,Industry Talk,Publications — Tags: , , , , , , — Matt @ 12:25 AM

   Good information to know.  If anyone else has anything to add, let me know or post it up in comments so we can get it out to the industry.  Cheers. –Matt

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State Department Amends ITAR To Add Temporary Export Exemption for Body Armor

August 7, 2009

The Department of State is amending the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) to add an exemption for the temporary export of body armor for exclusive personal use to destinations not subject to restrictions under the ITAR § 126.1, and to Afghanistan and Iraq under specified conditions, effective August 6, 2009.

In order to use the exemption, the protective equipment must be for the individual’s exclusive use and must be returned to the United States. The individual may not re-export the protective equipment to a foreign person or otherwise transfer ownership. The protective equipment may not be exported to any country where the importation would be in violation of that country’s laws.

The U.S. person declaring the temporary export of body armor to U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) should use CBP Form 4457, “Certificate of Registration for Personal Effects Taken Abroad.” In the event the body armor is lost or otherwise not returned to the United States, a detailed report about the incident must be submitted to the Office of Defense Trade Controls Compliance. The report should describe all attempts to locate the body armor.

Interested parties may submit comments at any time by any of the following methods:

E-mail: DDTCResponseTeam@state.gov with an appropriate subject line.

Mail: Department of State, Directorate of Defense Trade Controls, Office of Defense Trade Controls Policy, ATTN: Regulatory Change, Section 123.17, SA-1, 12th Floor, Washington, DC 20522-0112.

This notice may also be viewed on regulations.gov.

For further information, contact Director Charles B. Shotwell, Office of Defense Trade Controls Policy, Department of State, Telephone (202) 663-2792 or Fax (202) 261-8199; E-mail: DDTCResponseTeam@state.gov. ATTN: Regulatory Change, Section 123.17.

From the blog Official Export Guide

Thursday, April 30, 2009

Afghanistan: U.S. Takes Dutch Military as Role Model in Afghan Operation

Filed under: Afghanistan — Tags: , , , , — Matt @ 9:25 PM

     “The Obama administration, however, is having trouble finding civilian experts at the State Department to send to Afghanistan.” 

 

   Thanks to Master Gunner for this article.  He brought up the key sentence of the article, that made us both laugh.  There should be no trouble finding civilian experts, if the Obama administration is willing to tap into the free market system, as opposed to limiting the mission to only those he can find in government.  Face it, we are here, we are available and want to work, yet we just don’t want to be government employees.  We will gladly perform contracting services though, and it is a system that works if the government takes the time to just referee the whole thing to make sure everyone plays by some sound and effective rules.

   Also, I will give a kudo to the administration for at least giving the perception of trying to find the best model of operation.  That is what learning organizations do, and if in fact the Dutch have the best model of operation, then that is great that we want to use it.  But I will wait until we get some real experts on the subject to talk about it.  I am sure Tim Lynch and others have some ideas about this, and I look forward to any input. –Matt  

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U.S. Takes Dutch Military as Role Model in Afghan Operation

By JAY SOLOMON

APRIL 30, 2009

STROE, the Netherlands — The Obama administration, which wants to send hundreds of additional civilian personnel into Afghanistan, is looking at the Dutch military’s operations there for lessons on how to combat the Taliban.

The civilian deployment is part of a U.S. focus on economic development meant to weaken support for the Taliban and dry up finances it derives from the opium trade. The civilians will complement the deployment in the coming months of 21,000 new troops, many of whom will be posted to southern provinces where the Taliban are thriving.

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Wednesday, April 1, 2009

Industry Talk: Triple Canopy to Take Over Xe’s WPPS Contract

Filed under: Industry Talk — Tags: , , , — Matt @ 10:49 PM

 

     Well, we will see how they do.  That is a huge contract to take over, to include the aviation stuff.  –Matt

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Source: Firm to take over Blackwater/Xe’s Iraq contract 

Wednesday, April 1, 2009

From Charley Keyes

WASHINGTON (CNN) — Herndon, Virginia-based Triple Canopy has been awarded the security services contract in Baghdad, a State Department source told CNN Tuesday.

The order is effective Tuesday, the source said, but Triple Canopy’s “in-country performance” won’t begin until May 7.

Triple Canopy will take over the expiring contract of Blackwater, which changed its name to Xe last month. The State Department decided in January not to renew Blackwater/Xe’s contract when it expires in May.

That followed a refusal by the Iraqi government to renew the firm’s operating license because of a September 2007 shooting incident in which the Iraqi government says security guards — then employed by Blackwater — fired upon and killed 17 Iraqi civilians.

As part of a contract to protect American diplomats and other employees around the world, the State Department hired Blackwater for a multiple-year assignment in Iraq, renewable once a year. Blackwater/Xe, one of three security firms working for the United States in the country, had one of the biggest security contracts in Iraq.

Triple Canopy already has a State Department contract in Iraq. The new contract will increase its share of the security work there. DynCorp International also has a State Department contract for work in Iraq.

Losing the contract is considered a huge blow to Blackwater/Xe. While the company is privately held, the Iraq contract has been estimated to make up one-third to one-half of its business. Blackwater/Xe has about two dozen aircraft in Iraq, as well as 1,000 personnel.

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Saturday, January 10, 2009

Publications: IG Faults Oversight of Security Contractors

Filed under: Publications — Tags: , , — Matt @ 11:48 AM

Interesting little report about DoS and their lack of quality control and proper management with the WPPS contracts. –Matt 

Status of the Secretary of State’s Panel on Personal Protective Services in Iraq Report Recommendations 

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IG Faults Oversight Of Security Contractors

State Dept. Might Have Violated Rules

By Karen DeYoung

Washington Post Staff Writer

Saturday, January 10, 2009

The State Department may have violated federal regulations in turning over management aspects of its multibillion-dollar private security contract in Iraq to other contractors, the department’s inspector general concludes in a report released yesterday.

The report, produced by a regional IG office established last year to keep closer watch on expenditures in Iraq and Afghanistan, says the State Department Bureau of Diplomatic Security had been “highly effective in ensuring the safety” of diplomatic personnel in Iraq. There have been no casualties among U.S. diplomatic and civilian officials protected by contractors under the bureau’s supervision.

“However,” it says, “the rapid rise in use and scale of private security contractors has strained the Department’s ability to effectively manage them.” Department efforts, the IG found, were “undermined by frequent staff turnover, understaffing, increased workload, and the lack of standardized operating policies and procedures.”

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