Featured Article: CIA’s Covert Action in 1954

Featured article:

A CGSC International Hall of Fame Member and the CIA’s Covert Action in 1954
by John G. Breen

The International Hall of Fame at the Army’s Command and General Staff College (CGSC), Fort Leavenworth, KS, was established in 1973 to recognize prominent, international military officer graduates. Inductees have included those who rose through the ranks to become their nations’ senior military officers. A small number had become heads of state. Seventy-seven foreign military officers were inducted together in 1973 to establish the program. As of January 2017, there were 266 inductees from 71 countries. Currently, with the formal concurrence of the relevant U.S. Ambassador, nominees must go through a rigorous vetting process; the Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Army for Defense Exports and Cooperation manages vetting, and final approval rests with the Chief of Staff of the Army. Nomination packages are vetted through the Department of Defense and by the Department of State. The process can take as long as six months.

To now be eligible, the international CGSC graduate must have accomplished “through merit” one of the following:

  • Served as the senior military officer, by rank seniority, in one of his nation’s service components.
  • Been appointed to the highest command position in a national service component or the nation’s armed forces (i.e., Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff, Chief of Staff when such position entails service component command, Commanding General-Gendarmerie, Commanding General-Service Component, Commanding General-National Guard).
  • Been appointed commander of an operational combined command while holding a rank equal or senior to the highest rank held in his nation’s service component.
  • Been internationally recognized as having made a significant and enduring military or humanitarian contribution to international peace and stability (i.e., Commanding General of humanitarian relief or peace-keeping forces) while holding a rank equal or senior to the highest rank held in his nation’s service components.

Notably, current requirements also state: “Individuals who have attained a qualifying position through means other than military merit are not eligible…”

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IAJ 8-4 (2017) PDF

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John Breen, Ph.D., was formerly the Commandant’s Distinguished Chair for National Intelligence Studies at the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College. Dr. Breen earned his Ph.D. from the University of Rochester.


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