ABSTRACT

Probably the most demanding military assignment relative to the execution of United States foreign policy objectives in the post-war period was that of the military attaché. Military attaches, “at the point” of U.S. political-military policy abroad, provided intelligence to multiple U.S. agencies which used this information in the formulation of foreign policy. As a collector of intelligence and a diplomatic representative, the attaché’s job proved complex. Nations whose military was heavily involved in politics required the attaché to report on military equipment, tactics, and techniques and also on the military’s political predilections. Some attachés were unable to cope with the demands.1