DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY 

Office of Inspector General 

Management of 

Department of Homeland Security 

International Activities and Interests 

OIG-08-71 June 2008
 

Office of Inspector General 

U.S. Department of Homeland Security 

Washington, DC 20528

 June 24, 2008 

Preface 

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Office of Inspector General (OIG) was established by 

the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (Public Law 107-296) by amendment to the Inspector General 

Act of 1978. This is one of a series of audit, inspection, and special reports prepared as part of our 

oversight responsibilities to promote economy, efficiency, and effectiveness within the department. 

This report addresses the strengths and weaknesses of DHS management of its overseas activities 

and interests. It is based on interviews with employees and officials of relevant agencies and 

institutions, direct observations, and a review of applicable documents. 

The recommendations herein have been developed to the best knowledge available to our office, and 

have been discussed in draft with those responsible for implementation. It is our hope that this 

report will result in more effective, efficient, and economical operations. We express our 

appreciation to all of those who contributed to the preparation of this report 

Richard L. Skinner 

Inspector General 
Table of Contents/Abbreviations 

Executive Summary...............................................................................................................................1 

Background............................................................................................................................................2 

Overview of DHS International Engagement............................................................................2 

The Basis for DHS International Engagement...........................................................................5 

Overview of DHS International Management .........................................................................13 

Results of Review ................................................................................................................................17 

DHS Should Strengthen Headquarters Management of its International Enterprise...............17 

Systematized, Well-Funded International Training, Technical Assistance, and 

Information Exchange Activities Would Advance the DHS Mission ...............................38 

DHS Should Refine Its Approach to International Field Requirements..................................49 

DHS Can Address the Specialized Needs of its International Staff and Their Families 

More Effectively ................................................................................................................66 

Management Comments and OIG Analysis ........................................................................................81 

Appendices 

Appendix A: Purpose, Scope, and Methodology.........................................................................94 

Appendix B: Management’s Comments to the Draft Report ......................................................96 

Appendix C: Recommendations................................................................................................113 

Appendix D: DHS International Programs................................................................................116 

Appendix E: Major Contributors to This Report ......................................................................133 

Appendix F: Report Distribution ..............................................................................................134 

Tables 

Table 1: DHS Dotted-Line Authority Comparison..............................................................36 

Table 2: DHS International Field Requirements..................................................................55 

Table 3: Foreign Posts with DHS Representatives ..............................................................57 

Figures 

Figure 1: DHS Components with International Activities ....................................................13 

Figure 2: OIA Organization...................................................................................................18
 

Figure 3: Defense Attaché and Department of Justice Models .............................................52 
Table of Contents/Abbreviations 

Abbreviations 

BTS Border and Transportation Security Directorate (former) 

CBP Customs and Border Protection, Department of Homeland Security 

DEA U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, Department of Justice 

DHS Department of Homeland Security 

DOD Department of Defense 

EPA Environmental Protection Agency 

FBI Federal Bureau of Investigation, Department of Justice 

FEMA Federal Emergency Management Agency, Department of Homeland Security 

FLETC Federal Law Enforcement Training Center, Department of Homeland Security 

FY Fiscal Year 

GAO Government Accountability Office 

ICASS International Cooperative Administrative Support Services 

ICE Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Department of Homeland Security 

INS Immigration and Naturalization Service (former) 

OIA Office of International Affairs, Office of Policy, 

Department of Homeland Security 

OIG Office of Inspector General 

SAFE Security and Accountability for Every Port Act 

SHSR Senior Homeland Security Representative 

S&T Science and Technology Directorate, Department of Homeland Security 

TSA Transportation Security Administration, Department of Homeland Security 

TSAR Transportation Security Administration Representative 

T&TA Training and Technical Assistance 

USCIS United States Citizenship and Immigration Services, 

Department of Homeland Security 

US-VISIT United States Visitor and Immigrant Status Indicator Technology, 

Department of Homeland Security 
OIG 

Department of Homeland Security 

Office of Inspector General 

Executive Summary 

The Department of Homeland Security has extensive international activities 

and interests. Nearly 2,000 staff abroad are based in 79 countries, and a range 

of international interests and activities are managed out of domestic offices. 

We reviewed the department’s management of its international enterprise with 

a focus on strategic management, coordination across activities, and 

representation in international settings. To evaluate work in these areas, we 

conducted more than 240 interviews with department staff and representatives 

of other federal agencies. We met with employees in 13 cities in seven 

countries, and reviewed department guidance and communications. 

The department’s international activities and interests require management 

attention at headquarters and at posts abroad. At headquarters, the Office of 

International Affairs is the only office with a department-wide international 

focus covering all mission areas. The office has a number of key mandates, 

but for several years was only able to address one, its responsibility to advise 

and support senior department officials, due to staffing limitations. The office 

significantly increased its staff size, and has begun to develop regional 

engagement plans for different parts of the world and sponsor forums for 

department-wide exchange on international issues. These efforts do not 

completely satisfy the office’s obligations. Toward that end, the office should 

also develop an international strategic plan and prepare guidance on training 

and technical assistance abroad. Even so, the office will require more support 

from component international affairs units and some authority over them to 

fully execute its responsibilities. 

Department of Homeland Security international efforts also require 

management attention in the field. The department has pursued two 

approaches to address its international field management needs. In some 

locations, it has designated component staff to represent the department on a 

part-time basis. In other areas, it has selected and assigned full-time 

department attachés. Neither approach has been completely successful and 

we are recommending corrective actions to address those issues. The 

department must also improve its systems for preparing, supporting, and 

redeploying international staff. Overall, we are making 18 recommendations 

to improve the management of the DHS international affairs enterprise. 

Department managers generally agreed with our findings, concurred with 16 

recommendations, and required more time to consider the remaining two. 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

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Background 

In this section, we discuss the broad outlines of Department of Homeland 

Security (DHS) international activities and interests, the basis for the 

department’s current international engagement, the configuration of the 

management apparatus presiding over DHS international activities, and the 

management decisions that have shaped this apparatus. 

Overview of DHS International Engagement 

DHS has nearly 2,000 staff abroad and a range of international interests and 

activities managed out of domestic offices.1 DHS international staff are based 

in 142 cities in 79 countries. The department’s international programs are 

expansive. DHS staff assess the security condition of international airports 

and foreign air carriers. They combat fraudulent travel documents and 

counterfeit U.S. currency coming from abroad. They work against 

international dimensions of credit card scams and computer-based crimes. 

They pursue international leads and information on human trafficking and 

child exploitation cases. They prescreen maritime containerized cargo and 

request examinations from host governments. They materially support U.S. 

military deployments, and naturalize foreign nationals who are serving in our 

armed forces. They work to protect critical infrastructures that span borders, 

and play an integral role in the adoption of children from other nations by 

American families. Among a number of other international functions, DHS 

staff abroad interdict shipments of illegal drugs and migrants on the high seas. 

Eleven DHS agencies and offices maintain staff abroad. Of these, Customs 

and Border Protection (CBP) has the largest international presence. Five other 

DHS agencies, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), the Coast 

Guard, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), Secret Service, 

and Transportation Security Administration (TSA), each have more than 60 

staff abroad. 

Customs and Border Protection 

CBP has more than 1,000 staff abroad, more than half of whom support its 

preclearance operations. Staff in CBP preclearance units abroad perform 

immigration and customs screening on airline, cruise ship, and ferry 

passengers bound for the United States. CBP maintains preclearance 

operations at 15 international airports in Bermuda, Canada, the Caribbean, and 

Ireland.2

 CBP also has deployed staff abroad to four countries to prevent the 

1

 DHS officials sometimes cite a lower DHS international staff figure of approximately 1,700 employees. This figure
 

does not account for Coast Guard personnel abroad under Department of Defense operational command. 

2

 CBP units in Ireland only perform immigration pre-inspection activities, and do not conduct customs screening. 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

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movement of high-risk travelers identified as potential national security 

threats and to reduce the number of improperly documented passengers 

arriving in the United States. Through this program, the Immigration 

Advisory Program, CBP trains and assists air carriers and host country 

authorities in identifying high-risk passengers and works to enhance related 

immigration information sharing partnerships. 

In addition to its passenger screening programs, CBP has several hundred 

officers who support its Container Security Initiative.3 CBP personnel 

associated with the Container Security Initiative prescreen shipping containers 

at ports around the world before they arrive in the United States. The 

Container Security Initiative currently operates out of 58 ports in 33 countries. 

In addition, CBP conducts a significant amount of training and technical 

assistance abroad and is fielding CBP attachés to a number of posts. These 

CBP attachés are intended to serve embassies as in-house specialists for CBP 

issues, support CBP operations in country, and address CBP-related issues 

from the trade community, industry, and the traveling public. 

Immigration and Customs Enforcement 

ICE has 350 staff stationed abroad to coordinate with local law enforcement in 

foreign countries on information sharing and investigative matters. Most are 

special agents trained in criminal investigation. Many of these agents assist 

domestic field offices with the international dimension of U.S.-based cases 

and relay host country law enforcement requests for case information to ICE 

domestic offices. In the process, they address the full range of ICE 

investigative missions, from alien smuggling and child exploitation to 

intellectual property rights infringement cases and money laundering. Under 

the Visa Security Program, one group of special agents reviews visa 

applications, initiates visa security investigations, and provides related advice 

and training to Department of State consular officers. 

Coast Guard 

The Coast Guard has staff in a number of embassies and port cities around the 

world in support of its varied missions. The Coast Guard engages in port and 

maritime security efforts, conducts inspections of U.S.-flagged ships, and 

provides training and technical assistance to foreign counterparts. In addition 

to these missions, the Coast Guard is forward deployed overseas to support 

the Department of Defense’s (DOD) national security mission. Coast Guard 

personnel are involved in both Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation 

Enduring Freedom. The Coast Guard has about 300 employees abroad. 

3

 ICE Special Agents are also deployed abroad in support of the Container Security Initiative. 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

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U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services 

USCIS has almost 200 staff abroad in three district offices and 27 suboffices. 

They adjudicate citizenship and immigration applications and petitions filed 

overseas, process applications for international adoptions, and perform 

military naturalizations. USCIS also sends personnel abroad to assist in the 

processing of refugees and their families. 

Secret Service 

The Secret Service protective and investigative missions are served by more 

than 90 staff abroad. In fulfilling the protective mission, Secret Service staff 

abroad investigate international threats against protectees, work with foreign 

law enforcement to plan security around future protectee visits, and serve on 

protective details abroad. In addition, Secret Service agents abroad support 

counterfeit and financial crimes investigations, and work with foreign law 

enforcement and financial institutions to combat criminal activity in these 

areas. 

Transportation Security Administration 

TSA has approximately 65 employees overseas, and dozens of domestic staff 

with major international activities. TSA staff abroad liaise with foreign 

governments and air carriers to strengthen information sharing and promote 

aviation and transportation security. TSA transportation security specialists 

assess the implementation of security measures by foreign airports and air 

carriers with flights to the United States. Finally, Federal Air Marshals 

provide security on international flights and provide training to foreign air 

marshals. 

Other DHS Offices 

In addition to the six agencies discussed above, a number of other DHS 

organizations have an international presence. The following DHS entities 

have small international presences of one to two staff each: 

•	 Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), 

•	 Office of International Affairs, 

•	 Science and Technology Directorate, 

•	 Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (FLETC), and 

•	 United States Visitor and Immigrant Status Indicator Technology 

(US-VISIT) Program Office.4 

4

 The US-VISIT Program Office is a unit of the National Protection and Programs Directorate. 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

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DHS also has an array of international interests that are advanced by staff 

based in the United States. The following DHS organizations pursue 

international activities with Washington-based staff: 

• National Protection and Programs Directorate,5 

• Office of Counternarcotics Enforcement, 

• Office of Health Affairs, 

• Office of Intelligence and Analysis 

• Operations Coordination Office, and 

• Privacy Office. 

The Basis for DHS International Engagement 

DHS International Engagement Has a Broad Legal and Policy 

Foundation 

DHS international engagements stem from a broad mandate rooted in several 

congressional initiatives, international agreements, federal strategic directives, 

the vision of DHS leadership, and the execution of the international 

dimensions of core operational responsibilities. 

Congress Has Mandated Many DHS International Programs 

Several DHS international engagements are associated with congressionally 

mandated activities. These activities span all major DHS mission areas, 

including transportation, visa and traveler, cargo, and port security. 

Congress forged international roles and responsibilities for DHS in the 

department’s enabling legislation. Section 428 of the Homeland Security Act 

required DHS to assign staff abroad to review visa applications, conduct 

investigations into consular matters, and advise and train consular officers on 

security threats related to visa applications.6 The Homeland Security Act also 

made the department responsible for promoting “information and education 

exchange with nations friendly to the United States in order to promote 

sharing of best practices and technologies relating to homeland security.”7 

Other congressional mandates for DHS international programs and activities 

predate the department. The presence of the department’s TSA 

Representatives abroad, for example, can be traced back to a legislative 

5

 Two units in the National Preparedness and Programs Directorate have international activities and interests, but no 

international staff presence: the Office of Cyber Security and Communications, and the Office of Infrastructure 

Protection. 

6 Homeland Security Act of 2002 (P.L. 107-296), § 428(e)(1); codified at 6 U.S.C. § 236. For more on DHS visa security 

activities, see DHS OIG Report An Evaluation of DHS Activities to Implement Section 428 of the Homeland Security Act 

of 2002, OIG-04-33, available at http://www.dhs.gov/xoig/assets/mgmtrpts/OIG_04-33_Aug04.pdf. 7 Homeland Security Act of 2002 (P.L. 107-296), § 879(b)(1); codified at 6 U.S.C. § 459. 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

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response to the 1988 bombing of Pan Am 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland.8 

Following that disaster, Congress mandated the establishment of the Civil 

Aviation Security Liaison Officer program within the Federal Aviation 

Administration. These Civil Aviation Security Liaisons later transferred to 

TSA when it was formed in 2001. They were later renamed TSA 

Representatives, and became DHS employees when Congress included TSA 

among the federal agencies that joined DHS in 2003. 

Through the Maritime Transportation Security Act of 2002, Congress required 

the Coast Guard to assess the effectiveness of antiterrorism measures at 

foreign ports that host U.S.-bound vessels, and other ports deemed a risk to 

international maritime commerce. As part of its port assessment process, 

Congress required the Coast Guard to assess the effectiveness of cargo and 

baggage screening, measures to restrict unauthorized access to cargo and 

vessels, security on board vessels, compliance with security licensing and 

certification, other antiterrorism measures, and ports’ overall security 

management program.9 For countries found not to be maintaining effective 

security measures, Congress required that the Coast Guard conduct port 

security training to assist them and set conditions for entry for vessels arriving 

from those countries.10 

In the four years since the establishment of DHS, Congress further expanded 

the department’s international mandate through select laws and 

appropriations. 

Congress, with the approval of the President, formed the National 

Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States, more commonly 

known as the 9/11 Commission.11 The 9/11 Commission made a series of 

recommendations, many of which related to DHS. Among its 

recommendations was an appeal for the U.S. government to do “more to 

exchange terrorist information with trusted allies, and raise U.S. and global 

border security standards for travel and border crossing ... through extensive 

international cooperation.”12 

A recent law, the Implementing Recommendations of the 9/11 Commission Act 

of 2007, relates the congressional finding that the “United States and its allies 

in the global war on terrorism will mutually benefit from the sharing of 

technological expertise to combat domestic and international terrorism.”13 

8

 Statement of Jane Garvey to the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States, May 22, 2003, 

available at http://www.9-11commission.gov/hearings/hearing2/witness_garvey.htm. 9 Maritime Transportation Security Act of 2002 (P.L. 107-295), § 102; codified at 46 U.S.C. § 70108. 10 Maritime Transportation Security Act of 2002 (P.L. 107-295), § 102; codified at 46 U.S.C. § 70109 and 

46 U.S.C. § 70110. 

11 Intelligence Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2003 (P.L. 107-306), §§ 601-611. 12 National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States, 9/11 Commission Report, p. 390. 

(http://www.gpoaccess.gov/911/pdf/fullreport.pdf). 13 Implementing Recommendations of the 9/11 Commission Act of 2007 (P.L. 110-53), § 1901(a)(5).
 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

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The Act builds on this finding and 9/11 Commission recommendations by 

establishing a new office in DHS responsible for “promoting anti-terrorism 

through international cooperation.”14 This office, based in the Science and 

Technology Directorate (S&T), is to promote international exchanges, 

information sharing, and joint research initiatives. Under the law, the director 

of this office is responsible for developing agreements to promote 

international homeland security-related cooperative activity. In addition, the 

director is charged with facilitating international cooperative research 

activities, and matching U.S. entities engaged in homeland security research 

with foreign partners.15 

Another piece of landmark legislation for DHS, the 2006 Security and 

Accountability for Every (SAFE) Port Act,

16 created the legal foundation for 

several DHS international programs, authorized funding for the programs, and 

established new program requirements. The SAFE Port Act set legal 

parameters for the Container Security Initiative and granted DHS the authority 

to provide technical assistance, equipment, and training to foreign ports and 

governments in support of the initiative.17 In addition, it formally recognized 

the establishment of the CBP-managed Customs-Trade Partnership Against 

Terrorism, a public-private sector partnership to improve supply chain 

security through the voluntary adoption of security measures in exchange for 

trade processing benefits.18 The SAFE Port Act also authorizes appropriations 

for both the Container Security Initiative and Customs-Trade Partnership 

Against Terrorism through Fiscal Years 2010 and 2012, respectively.19 

Furthermore, through this legislation, Congress mandated that the Coast 

Guard conduct foreign port assessments on a regular cycle, and that DHS 

develop a plan to inspect U.S.-bound ferry passengers and vehicles.20 

The 2004 Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act further extended 

the scope of DHS international activities. Among its provisions were findings 

that the federal government “should work with other countries to ensure 

effective inspection regimes at all [foreign and domestic] airports,” and 

“develop and implement an outreach program to educate the public in the 

United States and abroad about the penalties for bringing in and harboring 

aliens.”21 In addition, the law provided authorization for DHS federal air 

marshals to train foreign law enforcement personnel, and mandated the 

14 Implementing Recommendations of the 9/11 Commission Act of 2007 (P.L. 110-53), § 1901(b)(1).
 15 Ibid.
 16 SAFE Port Act of 2006 (P.L. 109-347).
 17 SAFE Port Act of 2006 (P.L. 109-347), §§ 205, 233; codified at 6 U.S.C. § 945 and 6 U.S.C. § 983, respectively.
 18 SAFE Port Act of 2006 (P.L. 109-347), § 211; codified at 6 U.S.C. § 961. 

19 SAFE Port Act of 2006 (P.L. 109-347), §§ 205, 233, 223; codified at 6 U.S.C. § 945 and 6 U.S.C. § 973, respectively. 20 SAFE Port Act of 2006 (P.L. 109-347), §§ 122, 234; codified at 6 U.S.C. § 922 and 46 U.S.C. § 70108, respectively. 21 Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004 (P.L. 108-458), § 7210(b)(4), and § 5401(e); codified at 

8 U.S.C. § 1225a note and 8 U.S.C. § 1324, respectively.
 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

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expansion of passenger immigration admissibility preinspection activities to 

25 additional foreign airports by 2008.22 

Congress has compelled DHS to pursue some international activities by 

allocating funds for this purpose and otherwise directing action through DHS 

appropriations. The DHS Fiscal Year (FY) 2004 appropriation, for example, 

calls for FLETC to provide training for “foreign law enforcement officials on 

a space-available basis.”23 Meanwhile, all recent appropriations for the Secret 

Service anticipate limited Secret Service spending on the provision of 

technical assistance and equipment for foreign law enforcement agencies to 

combat currency counterfeiting.24 

In the department’s FY 2007 appropriation, Congress charged DHS with 

implementing a pilot program (under the Secure Freight Initiative) at three 

foreign ports through which all U.S.-bound containers undergo radiation 

screening and internal imaging scans, and are scrutinized by CBP analysts for 

potential threats. Through appropriations language that year, Congress also 

mandated that DHS require a passport or similar document for all individuals 

entering the United States, including Canadians, Mexicans, and U.S. citizens, 

under an initiative known as the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative.25 

DHS Is Committed to Other Actions in Support of International 

Agreements and Organizations 

DHS is party to a number of international agreements that stimulate 

departmental action. Its representation of U.S. government interests in a 

number of international forums also propels DHS onto the international stage. 

Some DHS international responsibilities stem from bilateral and multilateral 

arrangements with Mexico and Canada. Among other topics, these 

agreements govern the joint security of our shared border, shared waterways, 

and shared aviation systems. 

Along with a host of other treaties and agreements, the United States and 

Canada have signed a critical infrastructure protection and border security 

science and technology cooperation agreement. In a manner characteristic of 

some other bilateral arrangements, this agreement spawned a binational 

organization to oversee and direct implementation of its provisions. The DHS 

S&T Under Secretary is the principal U.S. representative to this Public 

22 Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004 (P.L. 108-458), § 4018 and § 7210(d); codified at 

49 U.S.C. § 44917 and 8 U.S.C. § 1225a(a)(4), respectively. 

23 DHS Appropriations Act, 2004 (P.L. 108-90). 24 Each of the DHS appropriations acts for the past four fiscal years (Public Laws 108-90, 108-334, 109-90, and 

109-295) have capped Secret Service expenditures in this area at $100,000. 25 DHS Appropriations Act, 2007 (P.L. 109-295). 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

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Security Technical Program. His staff, in association with other U.S. and 

Canadian scientists, make up the working elements of the group. 

Likewise, the United States has entered into a number of DHS-related 

understandings and agreements with Mexico. Under one such arrangement, 

DHS provides information to Mexican authorities for them to prosecute DHSidentified smugglers whose crimes do not meet U.S. Attorney Office 

thresholds for prosecution.26 In an effort to curb violence along our shared 

border, DHS and the Mexican Ministry of Interior have entered into a series of 

Border Violence Protocols that specify responsibilities and accountability 

systems for responding to border incidents, such as shootings, violence against 

law and border enforcement officers, and border incursions. 

DHS is also a primary federal executor of the trilateral Security and Prosperity 

Partnership with Mexico and Canada. Initiated in March 2005, the 

Partnership was created “to increase security and enhance prosperity ... 

through greater cooperation and information sharing.” DHS is the federal 

coordinator for the Partnership’s Security Agenda, and participates in 

ministerial and working-level events in support of the Partnership. 

In addition to supporting the implementation of agreements with other 

nations, DHS helps represent the U.S. government in a number of multilateral 

organizations. Two full-time DHS staff are present, for example, at the U.S. 

Mission to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization where they coordinate U.S. 

government work with the organization on civil emergency planning issues.27 

In addition, DHS is active in the Four Country Conference,28 Group of Eight 

Lyon-Roma Group to Combat Cross-National Crime,29 and Asia-Pacific 

Economic Cooperation forum.30 Similarly, DHS has a major role in the 

26 Under the Operation Against Smugglers (and Traffickers) Initiative on Safety and Security (OASISS), DHS 

representatives supply Mexican prosecutors in its Procaduría General de la República with information we have gathered 

on cross-border smugglers and traffickers. Between August 2005 and November 2007, Mexican authorities prosecuted
 

576 individuals in association with DHS under this program.

27 The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) is an alliance of 26 countries from North America and Europe
 

committed to fulfilling the goals of the North Atlantic Treaty for mutual defense and mutual aid, signed on April 4, 1949. 

Further information is available at: http://www.nato.int/. 28 The Four Country Conference draws together officials from the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, and 

Australia, to address shared immigration and border management interests. 

29 The Group of Eight (G-8) Lyon-Roma Group was formally established in 2001 by the Group of Eight countries (the
 

United States, the United Kingdom, Russia, Germany, Japan, Italy, Canada, and France), to combat international crime
 

and terrorism. Additional information on the group is available at: 

http://www.cybercrime.gov/g82004/g8_background.html. 30 The Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum is an intergovernmental group that discusses economic growth, 

cooperation, trade, and investment in the Asia-Pacific region. The group’s 21 member states include Australia, Russia, 

Canada, Mexico, and the United States. Further information is available at:
 

http://www.apec.org/content/apec/about_apec.html. 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

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World Customs Organization, International Civil Aviation Organization, and 

International Maritime Organization.31 

Strategic Guidance on Different DHS Mission Areas Affirms a DHS 

International Role 

A series of federal strategies set the strategic underpinnings for DHS 

international activities in priority areas for the executive branch. 

The National Strategy for Homeland Security observes that, “[s]ecurity at 

home ultimately is related to security abroad: as partners protect and defend 

their homelands, the security of our own Homeland increases.”32 

For its part, the National Strategy for Combating Terrorism projects 

international imperatives for DHS. It declares, for example, that: “We will 

expand our global capability for detecting illicit materials, weapons, and 

personnel transiting abroad or heading for the United States or U.S. interests 

overseas ... [and] use our global partnerships, international agreements, and 

ongoing border security and interdiction efforts.”33 Just as the previous 

iteration of the National Strategy for Combating Terrorism recognized DHS 

“Smart Border” and “Third Border” initiatives with Canada, Mexico, and 

Caribbean nations as key features of the effort to ensure the integrity of 

domestic infrastructures, the new strategy highlights the need for the U.S. 

government to provide foreign assistance in areas of DHS expertise.34 It 

underscores our commitment, for example, to work with some countries to 

help establish effective cross-border control.35 

The National Strategy to Combat Terrorist Travel calls for DHS to train 

foreign partners on identifying fraudulent travel documents and preventing 

unauthorized access to aircraft.36 In addition, it requires DHS to work with 

“US [sic] trading partners to better align maritime security programs and 

protocols and to share best practices.”37 Further, it establishes the strategic 

31 Currently representing 171 members, the World Customs Organization is an intergovernmental organization that
 

focuses primarily on customs matters. Its initiatives include developing global standards, harmonizing customs 

procedures and trade supply chain security, facilitating international trade, and enhancing customs enforcement and 

compliance activities. Further information on the organization is available at: 

http://www.wcoomd.org/home_about_us.htm. 

The International Civil Aviation Organization and the International Maritime Organization are United Nations agencies. 

The International Civil Aviation Organization provides a global forum for civil aviation. The International Maritime 

Organization sets the regulatory framework for international shipping by establishing rules, regulations, and standards
 

that govern the maritime environment. Further information on these United Nations agencies is available at: 

http://www.icao.int/icao/en/strategic_objectives.htm and http://www.imo.org/. 32 Homeland Security Council, National Strategy for Homeland Security, October 2007, p. 5. 33 National Strategy for Combating Terrorism, September 2006, p. 14. 34 National Strategy for Combating Terrorism, February 2003, p. 27. 35 National Strategy for Combating Terrorism, September 2006, p. 16. 36 National Strategy to Combat Terrorist Travel, May 2, 2006, p. 15. 37 Ibid., p. 16.
 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

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importance of DHS visa security, visa waiver, and western hemisphere travel 

programs and initiatives by linking them to key objectives.38 

Other federal strategic documents lay out international operational and policy 

thrusts for DHS as well. Areas of DHS international focus are evident, for 

example, in the National Infrastructure Protection Plan, National Strategy to 

Secure Cyberspace, and the National Drug Control Strategy. DHS 

international roles are further noted in the National Money Laundering 

Strategy, National Strategy to Combat Weapons of Mass Destruction, and 

International Outreach and Coordination Strategy for the National Strategy 

for Maritime Security. 

DHS Leadership Has Envisioned an International Role for the 

Department 

DHS leadership has relayed a vision for international engagement through key 

speeches, statements, and the department’s strategic plan. 

In January 2006, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice joined with Secretary 

Chertoff to express their shared vision for “Secure Borders and Open Doors” 

for the United States. This 3-part vision called for “renewing America’s 

welcome” by using improved technology and efficiency to demonstrate 

openness to business travelers, tourists, and students; developing 21st century 

travel documents; and performing “smarter screening.” 

In May 2007, Secretary Chertoff expanded on this vision. At a speech before 

the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies, the 

Secretary said that DHS works “internationally to identify potential threats 

well before they reach our shores, strengthen our perimeter defenses, and then 

partner with the international community to build resiliency into our shared 

systems of commerce and travel so that we can have these systems secure 

without undermining the fundamental fluidity which is the basis of the 21st 

century global system.”39 

The DHS strategic plan also signals the importance of international work in 

the department’s mission. The Department of Homeland Security Strategic 

Plan states that the DHS strategy is to extend “our zones of security beyond 

our physical borders identifying, prioritizing and interdicting threats to our 

nation before they arrive.”40 Overall, the strategic plan acknowledges the 

international dimensions of objectives supporting five of seven DHS strategic 

goals.41 

38 Ibid., pp. 18, 27. 

39 Remarks by Michael Chertoff to the Johns Hopkins University, Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International 

Studies, May 3, 2007. 

40 DHS, Securing Our Homeland: U.S. Department of Homeland Security Strategic Plan, 2004, p. 14. 41 U.S. Department of Homeland Security Strategic Plan, pp. 12, 14, 17, 18, 20, 22, 30, and 42. 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

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Since the department issued its strategic plan, Secretary Chertoff has 

enumerated several other goals for the department. In February 2007, the 

Secretary announced five near-term goals for DHS, including protecting the 

nation from dangerous people and goods, and protecting critical 

infrastructure.42 Initiatives in these areas have significant implications for 

foreign governments and their citizens. The Western Hemisphere Travel 

Initiative is a secretarial priority under the goal of protecting the nation from 

dangerous people, and implementation of this initiative had the effect of 

requiring Canadian nationals traveling to the United States to present 

passports or submit to other, more stringent identification requirements, 

before crossing the border. Whereas the Western Hemisphere Travel 

Initiative also has major domestic dimensions (e.g. passport requirements for 

Americans returning from Canada and Mexico), other DHS secretarial 

priorities are more squarely focused on work with international partners and 

allies. The Secretary’s objective of establishing a “Secure Virtual Perimeter,” 

for example, has associated initiatives to work more closely with Canada, 

Mexico, and Caribbean nations on air passenger screening. 

Operational Imperatives Contribute to DHS International Activities 

In addition to the legal and strategic basis for a DHS overseas presence, there 

is an operational need to have DHS staff abroad. One of the benefits of 

stationing staff overseas is the fostering of relationships with foreign 

counterparts. Through a continuing presence abroad, DHS can expand its 

relationships with foreign counterparts into fruitful partnerships. Because 

U.S. law is not applicable in a foreign country, and U.S. law enforcement 

officers do not have the investigative authorities they enjoy domestically, 

partnership with foreign law enforcement is essential to the investigation of 

cases that reach outside the United States. Foreign law enforcement can help 

provide leads in domestic cases, develop links between suspected criminals, 

and provide other vital information on the international dimensions of a case. 

DHS components also are overseas to provide key services. Among other 

work, USCIS staff abroad process adoptions for U.S. families, and provide for 

the naturalization of foreign nationals serving in the U.S. military abroad. For 

its part, the Coast Guard assists U.S. flagged vessels and other ships bound for 

U.S. ports. For a fee, Coast Guard staff abroad inspect U.S. flagged vessels, 

and certify the compliance of a select group of other vessels bound for U.S. 

ports with Coast Guard safety and security guidelines. By submitting 

themselves to Coast Guard inspections and certifications abroad, shipping and 

cruise lines can save time and money in accessing U.S. ports, where they may 

otherwise be delayed while awaiting their inspection or certification. 

42 Testimony of Secretary Michael Chertoff before the U.S. House of Representatives Subcommittee on Homeland 

Security, Committee on Appropriations, February 8, 2007, available at http://www.dhs.gov/xnews/testimony/ 

testimony_1170954411014.shtm. 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

Page 12 
Together, these congressional mandates, international agreements, federal 

strategic guidance, DHS leadership vision for the department, and the support 

and execution of primary operational responsibilities provide an imperative 

for active DHS engagement abroad. 

Overview of DHS International Management 

DHS has a complex, decentralized international management structure. 

Figure 1: DHS Components with International Activities 

Secretary 

Deputy Secretary 

CounterNarcotics 

Enforcement 

Coast Guard 

FEMA 

Citizenship 

& Immigration 

Services 

Health 

Affairs 

Federal Law 

Enforcement 

Training Center 

Customs 

& Border 

Protection 

Intelligence & 

Analysis 

Science & 

Technology 

Immigration 

& Customs 

Enforcement 

Operations 

Coordination 

Privacy 

Office 

Transportation 

Security 

Administration 

National 

Protection & 

Programs 

US-VISIT 

Secret Service 

International 

Affairs 

Policy 

Key 

Unit with Significant International Presence International Policy Unit with Small Int’l. Presence 

Unit with Small International Presence Unit with International Activities, But No Staff Abroad 

Source: OIG Analysis 

Several DHS components maintain their own offices of international affairs to 

support their international staff or international efforts. In a number of cases, 

particularly for the components with a larger overseas presence, these offices 

are sizeable, provide guidance and support for overseas staff, manage training 

programs, and develop international policies and plans. 

In some DHS components, other offices outside of their primary international 

affairs office preside over the day-to-day operations of international programs 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

Page 13 
 

 

and set related policy. For example, four different Coast Guard directorates 

and both of its area commands support international efforts. Similarly, five 

CBP units manage international efforts: the Office of International Affairs 

and Trade Relations, Office of Field Operations, Office of Border Patrol, 

Office of Air and Marine, and the Office of Intelligence and Operations 

Coordination. 

DHS component international affairs offices and other offices presiding over 

component international programs report through their respective chains of 

command to their component manager. These different lines of authority do 

not converge until they reach the DHS Deputy Secretary. 

This was not always the case. Four DHS components (CBP, ICE, TSA, and 

FLETC) formerly reported to an Under Secretary for Border and 

Transportation Security. The organizational unit he presided over, the Border 

and Transportation Security Directorate (BTS), maintained its own 

international affairs management staff. The BTS Office of International 

Enforcement had general oversight of BTS international policy matters and 

was responsible for ensuring that BTS components implemented international 

policy according to DHS and BTS policy guidance and directives. 

After completing his Second Stage Review of the department, on July 13, 

2005, Secretary Chertoff announced the restructuring of DHS.43 In 

reorganizing the department, the Secretary eliminated BTS and folded some 

of its international management staff into the newly formed DHS Office of 

Policy. This office was intended to serve as the primary department-wide 

coordinator for policies, regulations, and other initiatives; ensure consistency 

in these areas across the department; and perform long-range strategic policy 

planning.44 The Office of International Enforcement has become the Visa 

Waiver Program Office, and is now a subunit within the Policy Office’s 

Office of Policy Development. The current function of the office is to 

develop policy for, and monitor implementation of, the Visa Waiver Program. 

This program allows citizens of select countries to travel to the United States 

for business or tourism for up to 90 days without a U.S. visa. 

The DHS Office of International Affairs, formerly part of the Office of the 

Secretary, was integrated into the Office of Policy following the Second Stage 

Review, as well. Established in the Homeland Security Act of 2002, the 

Office of International Affairs is to “manage international activities within the 

[d]epartment.”45 Further, OIA is to play a “central role in developing the 

Department’s strategy for pushing the Homeland Security mission overseas 

43 Secretary Michael Chertoff, U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Second Stage Review Remarks, Ronald Reagan 

Building, Washington, DC, July 13, 2005, Available online at: www.dhs.gov/xnews/speeches/speech_0255.shtm. 44 Department Six-point Agenda, U.S. Department of Homeland Security, last modified February 21, 2008, available 

online at: www.dhs.gov/xabout/history/editorial_0646.shtm. 45 Homeland Security Act of 2002 (P.L. 107-296), § 879(b); codified at 6 U.S.C. § 459. 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

Page 14 
 

 

and actively engages foreign allies to improve international cooperation for 

immigration policy, visa security, aviation security, border security and 

training, law enforcement, and cargo security.”46 

Evolution of the DHS International Affairs Management Arrangement 

Many of the international management issues addressed in this report have 

been previously considered by DHS managers, with varying results. 

Collectively, these decisions have fashioned the department’s current 

international affairs management arrangement. 

In early 2003, the BTS Under Secretary constituted an International Affairs 

Working Group to consider the configuration of BTS units’ international 

operations and management. The Working Group drew together a number of 

representatives of future DHS components, including the Immigration and 

Naturalization Service (INS), Customs Service, TSA, and the Coast Guard, as 

well as officials from the Department of State, and the White House Office of 

Homeland Security. The Working Group considered multiple options for 

consolidating the legacy agencies’ international activities, including colocating international affairs offices, bringing international affairs offices 

under a direct line of authority to the BTS Under Secretary, and designating 

BTS attachés from among senior immigration and customs staff abroad to 

provide BTS representation, as well. 

On October 31, 2003, the DHS Secretary signed an international organization 

plan for the department that pre-empted the BTS Under Secretary’s 

consideration of his working group’s proposals.47 The memorandum set off a 

realignment of functions and staff that removed the BTS Office of 

International Enforcement’s operational role in visa security, and established 

an ICE Office of International Affairs to, among other matters, manage the 

department’s visa security program. Perhaps more significantly, the 

reorganization shifted operational control of hundreds of former Customs 

Service criminal investigators, many of whom had been working to roll out 

the CBP-managed Container Security Initiative, from CBP to ICE, and the 

former INS Office of International Affairs from BTS to ICE. In addition, the 

reorganization called for the designation of DHS attachés at several posts 

abroad “to coordinate all activity at the post, provide oversight reporting to 

DHS headquarters, and ensure that all DHS chains of command are informed 

appropriately regarding operational activity.”48 The new international 

organization plan also strengthened the Office of Secretary’s role in 

46 Office of International Relations Mission and Responsibilities, Department of Homeland Security, last updated
 

February 8, 2008, available online at: www.dhs.gov/xabout/structure/editorial_0874.shtm. 47 Due to the date of the Secretary’s decision to reformulate the department’s international organization, the associated
 

memo is sometimes referred to as the Halloween memo. 

48 Memo from Lucy Clark, Counselor to the Secretary, and Scott Boylan, Office of Chief of Staff, to Secretary Tom
 

Ridge, “DHS International Organization Plan,” October 31, 2003, p. 1. 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

Page 15 
 

 

 

coordinating international affairs questions for the department by defining 

certain international functions for that office. It also created an International 

Coordinating Committee under the leadership of the Deputy Secretary. In 

January 2005, the BTS Under Secretary announced his resignation and the 

mid-2005 DHS reorganization abolished BTS. 

Another significant management decision affecting DHS international 

activities came in 2004 with the issuance of a management directive on the 

review and approval of DHS positions abroad. Under National Security 

Decision Directive 38, the Secretary of State has final approval on the size, 

composition, and mandate of all U.S. government civilian staff abroad. To 

comply with this requirement, DHS must submit all proposed staffing changes 

to U.S. ambassadors for consideration. For the first year of the department’s 

existence, DHS components submitted their staffing change proposals 

separately. DHS Management Directive 3400 modified this arrangement, 

such that all DHS component requests for new positions abroad are approved 

by the DHS Deputy Secretary before they are submitted to the Department of 

State. The directive provides OIA the opportunity to review requests and 

recommend that the Deputy Secretary approve or deny them.49 

Another earlier management directive could have important implications on 

DHS international engagements, but has been unheeded. Issued in March 

2003, Management Directive 3160 requires approving officials to consult with 

OIA on staff requests for participation in meetings and conferences held 

outside of the United States.50 During our fieldwork, however, no DHS 

component representatives ever indicated compliance with this requirement, 

and OIA representatives told us that they were not regularly consulted on 

component requests to attend meetings and conferences abroad. 

As an outgrowth of the above decisions and practice, DHS-level programs and 

initiatives with an international bearing continue to be distributed across 

several offices. Regular DHS-wide international affairs gatherings are now 

chaired by OIA, instead of the Deputy Secretary, but a recent effort to develop 

a DHS international strategic plan was managed by the Office of the 

Secretary. The OIA-sponsored gatherings have tended to be informal affairs 

at which the representative of each component offers information about his or 

her organization’s current international activities. The department’s 

participation in the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States is 

managed by a separate office in the Policy Office.51 This is the case with the 

49 DHS, Management Directive 3400: Review and Approval of Foreign DHS Positions, October 30, 2003.
 50 DHS, Management Directive 3160: Attendance at Meetings and Conferences, March 2003. 

51 The Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States is an interagency committee that reviews acquisitions of 

U.S. assets by foreign persons to determine whether the acquisitions pose a risk to national security. DHS is an active 

participant on the committee. 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

Page 16 
 

Visa Waiver Program policy development and oversight, as well.52 Still 

another unit in the Policy Office, the Office of Screening Coordination, leads 

the DHS working group on implementation of the Western Hemisphere Travel 

Initiative. 

Results of Review 

DHS Should Strengthen Headquarters Management of its International 

Enterprise 

The DHS Office of Policy’s OIA has four primary mandates. Set out in 

Homeland Security Act and guidance from DHS leadership, these 

responsibilities are classed into the following categories: 

•	 Advise and support the Secretary and Deputy Secretary on 

international matters, 

•	 Manage the department’s international enterprise, 

•	 Engage other nations and international organizations in support of the 

DHS mission, and 

•	 Plan and promote international information and educational exchange. 

In this section, we discuss OIA performance in its first three areas of 

responsibility. The following section on International Training and Technical 

Assistance addresses OIA work in its last major area of responsibility. 

Since the inception of DHS, OIA has focused most of its energies on 

satisfying its responsibilities in the first area. The focus on this effort has 

diminished its ability to address the other aspects of its mandate. To satisfy its 

responsibilities in these areas, OIA will require more information from, and 

authority over, components. 

The Office of International Affairs and Its Responsibilities 

While international policy and activities are attended to by units throughout 

DHS, the DHS Office of International Affairs is the only office with a 

department-wide international focus covering the full range of DHS missions. 

In this regard, OIA is best placed to be the linchpin in DHS management of 

international efforts. 

Presided over by the DHS Assistant Secretary for International Affairs, OIA is 

a unit within the department’s Office of Policy. The office has 29 staff who 

are primarily organized along regional lines; each of its six regional directors 

52 These functions are handled by the Policy Office’s Visa Waiver Program Office, within its Office of Policy 

Development. 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

Page 17 
 

and subordinate staff have geographic areas of responsibility. In aggregate, 

these regionally aligned staff provide global coverage. Three other OIA 

senior staff operate outside of the office’s regional framework. The office has 

an executive director, a training and technical assistance coordinator, and a 

special advisor on transportation issues. 

Figure 2: OIA Organization 

Source: DHS Office of International Affairs 

OIA Has Concentrated on Its Responsibility to Support DHS Leadership 

The DHS website indicates that OIA is to advise, inform, and assist the 

Secretary and Deputy Secretary on “strategies, foreign policy matters, and the 

department programs and operations that impact U.S. international 

relations.”53 

These responsibilities have been the primary focus for OIA. Preparations for 

international travel by the Secretary and Deputy Secretary, and for meetings 

they host for foreign visitors, absorb a significant amount of OIA time and 

resources. During the first six months of 2007, the two officials had 16 major 

international meetings and trips, each requiring advance coordination, 

scheduling, policy discussion, and the preparation and vetting of briefing 

materials. One OIA employee estimated that the office prepares an average of 

three event briefs per day for DHS senior staff. 

Current and former OIA staff reported that OIA support of the DHS Secretary 

and Deputy Secretary dominated its agenda from 2003 until late in 2006. OIA 

managers said that, in the past, the office had engaged almost exclusively in 

53 http://www.dhs.gov/xabout/structure/editorial_0874.shtm. 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

Page 18 
 

secretarial support activities, especially in preparing talking points and event 

briefs for the Secretary. 

The focus on DHS executive office support in OIA contributed to the view 

among many in DHS that this was the office’s only purpose. More than one 

DHS component international affairs manager described OIA as an eventplanning office for DHS leadership. A number of headquarters and 

component staff expressed disappointment that OIA had not devoted more 

effort to address other responsibilities, such as providing strategic guidance 

and coordination. 

Most component staff we interviewed had a favorable perspective on the work 

of OIA employees. Interviewees attributed the office’s lesser attention to 

policy matters to staffing limitations. OIA was formed in early 2003 with 

three personnel. It had fewer than ten employees by the end of 2005. Present 

and former OIA employees expressed the view that this small staff size 

constrained the office’s ability to serve as much more than event planners. In 

the past two years, however, OIA staffing has increased. The number of OIA 

staff more than tripled from late 2005 to October 2007. 

OIA Needs Additional Tools to Effectively Manage the Department’s 

International Enterprise 

The Homeland Security Act charges OIA with the responsibility “to manage 

international activities within the Department.”54 It is unclear, however, how 

OIA is to execute this management responsibility. Among DHS staff working 

in the international affairs arena, there are different views on the proper shape 

of the OIA management role. Some staff believe that OIA should be involved 

in operational matters, influence international program budgets, and have 

direct line authority over some component staff abroad. Others say that 

because component international programs have their own management 

teams, the role of OIA should be limited. 

While there were diverse views on how precisely OIA should manage the 

department’s international enterprise, there was little question that it was 

appropriate for OIA to engage in two types of department-wide management 

activities: strategic management and coordination. 

OIA Needs to Enhance its Strategic Management of DHS International Affairs 

DHS international staff we met with widely regarded the provision of strategic 

guidance as an appropriate role for OIA. They said that OIA should embrace 

a strategic management approach in executing its international affairs 

management responsibility. 

54 Homeland Security Act of 2002 (P.L. 107-296), § 879(b)(4); codified at 6 U.S.C. § 459. 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

Page 19 
Strategic management is generally understood to include at least two types of 

activities: strategic planning and implementation. In the strategic planning 

process, organizations present their future vision, define a mission, and set 

associated goals and objectives. Strategic implementation efforts often 

include assigning responsibility for fulfilling objectives, tracking progress on 

initiatives, and ensuring that resources are allocated to support priorities. 

DHS staff we spoke with observed shortcomings in OIA efforts in these areas. 

OIA has made some progress in providing strategic guidance on a regional 

basis, but has not provided a framework to guide the DHS international 

enterprise at large. A broad international strategy is needed, in part, because 

current department-wide guidance does not address international engagement 

with sufficient depth or breadth to drive action meaningfully across the 

department. Limitations in current department-wide strategic guidance make 

it difficult to ensure that the international undertakings of different units in the 

department are proceeding cohesively. Once an overarching strategic 

framework has been paired with regional guidance, OIA can turn to 

monitoring its implementation. 

Many DHS international staff said that they had not encountered any DHS 

strategic guidance on international affairs matters. One TSA representative 

abroad, for example, said that she had never seen any guidance from DHS 

headquarters, whatsoever. Asked about DHS international strategies and 

priorities, a U.S.-based component international affairs manager said that he 

“was not aware of one.” A DHS component manager in Frankfurt, Germany 

expressed frustration that he had not received information on DHS strategic 

plans, and did not have a sense for the department’s international priorities. 

A number of DHS international staff speculated that DHS-level international 

strategic guidance had been incorporated into the international strategic 

guidance their component managers had provided. This has not been the case, 

however, because DHS has not issued any such guidance. 

Several senior DHS component international affairs managers perceived that 

OIA could do more in this area. A manager in the CBP international affairs 

office said that DHS should prepare international affairs strategies and see to 

it that component activities aligned with these strategies. Another CBP 

manager said that the department had assumed a reactive rather than proactive 

posture abroad because DHS had not articulated clear international goals. A 

senior Coast Guard international affairs manager stressed that there has to be 

strategic direction from DHS if its component agencies are to work together 

toward a unified goal. FEMA representatives we spoke with said that they 

would like to see a set of department-wide international priorities, and said 

that because there had not been more DHS-level guidance of this type, the 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

Page 20 
department may have missed opportunities to use outreach in emergency 

management to help build partnerships with other nations. 

At the time of our fieldwork, OIA had prepared draft strategic engagement 

plans for some, but not all regions of the world. Draft engagement strategies 

for the Asia-Pacific region and Canada provided strategic direction, strategic 

and tactical goals, and discussed some related objectives. They also provided 

information on approaches for accomplishing identified goals and objectives, 

and presented a general timeline to do so. OIA strategic planning in other 

regions had not advanced as far when we concluded our fieldwork. As of 

September 2007, OIA had not begun to develop draft regional engagement 

plans for the Middle East, Africa, and South Asia. 

While the development and approval of these engagement plans was a priority 

for the incoming Assistant Secretary of International Affairs, none had been 

finalized by the end of our fieldwork. 

These DHS-level international strategic planning efforts have lagged behind 

those of several DHS components. As a result, some components have 

proceeded with international strategic planning efforts without a clear 

perspective on DHS international goals and objectives. The Coast Guard 

Commandant signed and issued an international strategic plan in August 2006. 

ICE and TSA have developed draft international strategic plans. 

While these component plans address component goals and objectives that are 

linked to the DHS Strategic Plan, the connection between component plans 

and DHS-level guidance of any sort is very remote. This is at least in part 

because the DHS Strategic Plan provides no guidance on how to engage 

specific international counterparts on particular issues. 

The ICE draft strategic plan for the agency’s Office of International Affairs 

provides a good illustration of the divide between DHS guidance and 

component international initiatives. Under its draft plan, ICE describes a 

noteworthy initiative to (1) develop a template for immigration mutual 

assistance agreements with other nations, and (2) negotiate such agreements. 

These immigration agreements would parallel the customs mutual assistance 

agreements CBP and ICE already have with 61 countries. Despite the fact 

that this major initiative could have implications for a number of other DHS 

units, it is not driven or shaped to a significant extent by any published DHS 

guidance. Consider how it ties into the DHS Strategic Plan: the initiative is 

an ICE Office of International Affairs initiative, linked to an ICE Office of 

International Affairs strategy for implementing an ICE Office of International 

Affairs objective. The objective is tied to five ICE strategic goals that are 

connected to several high-level DHS objectives. Because the initiative is so 

far removed from DHS guidance, other affected DHS offices cannot be 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

Page 21 
assured that their interests will be addressed in ICE-negotiated immigration 

agreements. 

Limitations in DHS international strategic guidance prompted the Coast 

Guard to leverage more heavily the guidance from outside the department in 

developing its international strategy. Rather than referencing any DHS 

guidance, the Coast Guard’s International Strategic Guidance indicates what 

National Strategy for Maritime Security objectives and actions each Coast 

Guard international strategic objectives is linked to. By contrast, the Coast 

Guard guidance does not establish how Coast Guard international objectives 

relate to DHS strategic aims. 

Limited strategic planning progress at the DHS level was cited as a challenge 

in ICE, TSA, and Coast Guard international strategic planning efforts. Senior 

staff in the ICE Office of International Affairs said that their strategic plan had 

not been finalized in part because DHS had not provided guidance that they 

could “cascade off of.” A senior TSA manager said that departmental 

guidance provides less clarity than optimal for strategic planning purposes. 

Meanwhile, a Coast Guard international affairs manager said that DHS had 

not provided sufficient guidance on its priorities and objectives to inform 

Coast Guard international strategic planning. 

Other major international planning efforts have been undertaken by DHS 

component agencies without the benefit of clear guidance from DHS on the 

department’s international priorities. Perhaps most significantly, several 

components have studied and reconsidered their international staff footprints 

without formal DHS guidance on priorities. In the past year, CBP deployed 

dozens of CBP attachés to international posts that had no prior CBP presence. 

The analysis underpinning the CBP decision to deploy staff to these additional 

locations accounted for the local workload associated with CBP 

responsibilities, but did not clearly address DHS interests and obligations 

outside of CBP. Similarly, ICE, USCIS, and the Secret Service reconsidered 

and realigned their international staffing recently, and all have done so 

without formal DHS strategic direction on their decisions to shift staff around 

the globe. 

While OIA is proceeding with the development of regional, and in the case of 

Canada, national, engagement plans, it has no plans to prepare overarching 

strategic guidance for the DHS international enterprise. Such comprehensive, 

broad-based guidance on how DHS plans to advance policy and operational 

aims abroad is missing. As discussed, the DHS Strategic Plan does not 

contain sufficient refinement on international issues to drive component action 

in anything but the most remote way. While the Secretary’s near-term goals 

and initiatives provide more specific direction for a few international efforts, 

they are not sufficiently comprehensive or broad-based to drive the larger 

enterprise. 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

Page 22 
To drive the department’s international engagement more effectively, DHS 

should develop an associated strategic plan. Without a plan of this kind, it 

will be difficult to ensure that OIA regional engagement strategies reflect 

global priorities. And as long as DHS has not provided a panoramic vision of 

where the department intends to advance on international issues, DHS 

component international affairs offices will not have ready access to 

meaningful departmental guidance on their major international policy and 

operational thrusts. 

The department’s international strategic plan should reflect the department’s 

international mission and associated goals, objectives, and initiatives. It 

should provide a high-level discussion of the department’s current 

international engagements, homeland security-related conditions abroad, and 

project a future vision in these areas. In addition, it could present 

international aims along functional lines for the range of DHS policy and 

operational areas by defining international engagement objectives along a 

continuum of exchange including international assessment, capacity building, 

harmonization, information sharing, and joint operations. 

Such a plan should be closely tied to the overall DHS Strategic Plan. It 

should also be consistent with applicable U.S. government-wide strategic 

guidance, congressional mandates, and our commitments to other nations and 

international organizations. In developing the plan, DHS should coordinate 

with the Department of State to ensure that it is consistent with U.S. foreign 

policy goals, and to ensure that it fully leverages U.S. resources overseas. 

For the plan to influence international activities across the department, DHS 

must monitor and enforce compliance. At minimum, this will entail assigning 

responsibility for implementing initiatives, and setting related benchmarks and 

milestones. Ideally, it would also include periodic assessments of the extent 

to which international resources are allocated in line with the strategy. 

Consistent with this view, we recommend that the Assistant Secretary for 

Policy: 

Recommendation #1: Develop, in consultation with all major DHS 

components, a DHS international strategic plan and establish a process for 

managing implementation of this plan. 

OIA Has Had Some Success in Coordinating International Activities Across 

DHS, But More Could Be Done 

In addition to strategic management, another recognized international 

management role for OIA is coordination. Office of Policy and component 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

Page 23 
 

international affairs staff, as such, suggested that this was an appropriate role 

for OIA. In particular, DHS international staff underscored the value of an 

OIA role in facilitating multicomponent initiatives, deconflicting potentially 

overlapping efforts by DHS components, and coordinating the larger 

enterprise. 

The department’s description of OIA also reflects the view that the office is 

responsible for coordinating DHS international affairs. According to the 

department, OIA “coordinates all aspects of Department international affairs 

including developing, coordinating, and executing department international 

policy, including reviewing departmental positions on international matters, 

... developing policy and programs....”55 

OIA has taken some steps to coordinate international affairs activities, but its 

efforts are limited by its access to information and its authorities with respect 

to other parts of the department involved in international activities. 

OIA Sponsors Useful Forums for Exchange 

OIA hosts DHS component international affairs staff on a regular basis to help 

coordinate the international activities of DHS component offices. For the past 

several years, OIA has sponsored a monthly meeting of senior component 

international affairs managers. OIA has structured discussion at these 

sessions around a wide range of topics. Some monthly gatherings have 

concentrated on ways to expand Department of State familiarity with DHS 

activities abroad, while others addressed how to provide field support for 

DHS-level efforts in countries where the department has staff representing 

only a few components. On one occasion, the group discussed how DHS 

should approach efforts to shore up the security and operating environment in 

“failing states.” 

OIA also co-chairs a quarterly gathering of DHS component international 

affairs managers with the Department of State’s Office of Rightsizing. This 

gathering chiefly focuses on addressing interdepartmental issues related to the 

DHS footprint abroad, but also has touched on issues such as access to 

information systems. 

In addition to these senior staff sessions, several OIA regional directors have 

hosted regionally focused meetings for working-level staff in the department. 

OIA staff use these sessions as forums to share up-to-date information on 

component international programs, help develop agendas for DHS senior staff 

travel, and gather input into regional engagement strategies. Some regional 

working groups have operated for several years, while others have scarcely 

met at all or have only done so intermittently. Component international 

55 http://www.dhs.gov/xabout/structure/editorial_0874.shtm. 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

Page 24 
affairs staff at headquarters were generally aware of OIA working groups 

sessions, and participation in some of the sessions was broad based. 

Most component staff we spoke with regarded the senior staff meetings and 

regional working group sessions favorably, although some perceived that few 

benefits accrued to them as a result of their participation. A Secret Service 

international operations manager described the monthly OIA gatherings as 

“great.” She said that the sessions had provided her with key information 

about important Department of State processes and opened doors to other 

component international affairs offices. An international affairs manager in 

ICE said that the sessions helped him identify some redundancy and overlap 

between different components’ activities abroad. Meanwhile, an international 

affairs manager for another DHS office said that he had participated in all of 

the regional working groups, and characterized them as valuable and time 

efficient. Finally, the S&T international program director reported that the 

working groups had helped her identify component international S&T 

requirements, priorities, capability gaps, and areas for potential collaboration 

with foreign partners. 

Other DHS component international affairs representatives acknowledged the 

value of the meetings for OIA, but questioned whether they benefit enough to 

continue to attend in the future. One Coast Guard manager said that the OIAled monthly gatherings may provide OIA with information on component 

activities, but that the sessions were of little value to the Coast Guard. A 

USCIS manager said that the utility of attending the regional working groups 

was not very high for USCIS because many of the topics discussed related to 

DHS component missions are not relevant to USCIS. An international affairs 

manager for a smaller office in the department said that the regional working 

group sessions had the positive effect of bringing different components 

together, but were very time consuming to attend regularly. Another 

international affairs manager reported that her office accrued limited 

operational benefit from attending the regional working groups, and as a result 

received little return on investment from participating in the 2-hour sessions. 

Several DHS international employees suggested that DHS engagement with 

them on a functional basis may be more productive. One component 

international affairs manager said that the regional working group of greatest 

value for her office was the South Africa working group, which focused on 

combating immigration fraud; a topic germane to her office’s mandate. 

Another component manager said that immigration-focused meetings 

addressing international issues would be more useful to her office than the 

current regional meetings. 

Although OIA outreach to component international affairs staff could be 

improved, its efforts to date have yielded some of the only forums in which 

interested parties can gather and share information on international activities. 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

Page 25 
Other than working groups addressing aspects of the Secure Border and 

Western Hemisphere Travel Initiatives managed by other Policy Office units, 

no other international affairs coordinating bodies in the department draw 

together representatives from more than two components. 

To address the interests of some key DHS component international affairs 

staff more precisely, OIA should consider sponsoring a series of regular 

department-wide gatherings on the international dimensions of functional 

issues. These sessions could be held quarterly or semiannually, and address 

the international aspects of crosscutting issues such as immigration fraud, 

maritime and cargo security, or alien smuggling. 

We recommend that the Assistant Secretary for International Affairs: 

Recommendation #2: Host, in collaboration with policy staff in other Office 

of Policy units, periodic meetings with international affairs staff from other 

DHS components on the international dimensions of different functional 

aspects of the DHS mission. 

Other OIA Coordination Efforts Are Limited by Information and Authority 

Constraints 

In addition to providing forums for exchange, OIA has sometimes coordinated 

and facilitated component international activities. However, OIA activity in 

this area is subject to a few significant constraints that limit the office’s ability 

to perform with full effectiveness. 

When OIA has been able to coordinate international efforts outside of the 

forums for exchange discussed earlier, it has done so with some success. We 

heard favorable assessments, for example, of OIA work informing policy 

discussions in other parts of the Policy Office when pressing international 

issues arose. We also heard positive feedback on the office’s role in 

coordinating DHS efforts in multilateral gatherings, and in advancing some 

key bilateral agreements. OIA staff provided examples of their work in 

support of DHS component initiatives in countries in which that component 

had no permanent representative. 

While OIA has coordinated some DHS international efforts outside of its 

forums for exchange, component staff reported that OIA efforts in this regard 

were insufficient. Some key component international affairs representatives 

said that OIA had not fulfilled its coordination mandate to the extent 

necessary. One Coast Guard representative said that, as yet, OIA was not seen 

as a coordinating body within DHS. Other component staff wished that OIA 

had been more active in coordinating and deconflicting cross-component 

activities. 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

Page 26 
We were told of a number of cases in which OIA coordination would have 

been helpful, but was absent. The office’s shortcomings in this respect can be 

seen as a product of two factors: 

•	 OIA is limited in its access and ability to disseminate valuable 

international information, and 

•	 OIA has little authority to direct action by other components. 

OIA Access to and Ability to Disseminate Information Is Limited 

One key to effective coordination is good situational awareness. OIA cannot 

effectively coordinate international activities if it is not apprised of them. 

OIA has had difficulty obtaining even basic information about component 

activities abroad. Until July 2007, for example, OIA did not have an accurate 

tally of the number of DHS component staff abroad or their operating 

locations. Despite OIA calls for components to routinely update this 

international staffing data, the information remains incomplete. One OIA 

regional director said that he could not tell exactly how many DHS staff were 

in his region or where they were in the region because the staff numbers DHS 

components provided were incomplete or inaccurate. 

Although OIA staff have developed informal networks of contacts throughout 

the department, the office does not have organizational telephone and email 

lists for all of the major international affairs units in DHS. OIA staff also said 

that the office does not have program descriptions for all of the department’s 

international programs. 

Further underscoring the limits of OIA familiarity with component 

international affairs operations is the fact that OIA is not always apprised of 

high-level international visitors to DHS components, or of component senior 

officials’ foreign travels. Given advance notice of these high-level 

international contacts, OIA can help coordinate to ensure that senior officials 

from one component speak to the interests of other components. Because 

OIA has not been consistently informed of these exchanges, however, it has 

not been able to provide this advance coordination in all cases. 

Some OIA staff we spoke with said that they were sometimes caught off 

guard by significant international efforts on the part of DHS components. 

OIA learned, for example, that ICE had developed a draft strategy to combat 

the threat of gangs from Central America and Mexico and was at the point of 

distributing it to other federal departments for comment without having first 

cleared it with DHS headquarters or other components. OIA staff said that 

they learned of noteworthy component international activities from 

representatives of other departments or other governments before hearing 

about them from component staff. One OIA employee said that he was caught 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

Page 27 
flatfooted at a meeting with officials from a Southeast Asian nation when he 

learned from them about noteworthy exchanges between ICE and a Southeast 

Asian nation on the arming of U.S. commercial pilots; exchanges ICE had not 

noted earlier. 

OIA staff we spoke with said that they sometimes had difficulty obtaining 

information from DHS components on their international programs after 

making requests. Asked to rate the responsiveness of different DHS 

components to OIA requests for information, one OIA employee described 

two components as “not responsive,” adding that he would give one of them 

“an F” in this regard. 

Because OIA has no direct tasking authority vis-à-vis DHS components, its 

requests for information are most often handled through the Executive 

Secretariat process. Several OIA employees we spoke with said that this 

process did not satisfy their informational needs. They described the 

Executive Secretariat process as cumbersome, and said that responses they 

received through it were often late and sometimes of poor quality. One OIA 

employee said that when he sends materials for clearance through the 

Executive Secretariat process they disappear. In response to the perceived 

shortcomings of the process, OIA staff frequently seek component advice and 

information informally, through personal connections. Component managers 

and OIA staff both regarded this informal approach as less than optimal, and 

at least one component sought to stop informal queries from OIA. 

OIA also faces limitations on its visibility into the international elements of 

the activities of senior policymakers. Component international affairs staff 

said that they received little information from OIA about the outcome of 

meetings between senior DHS officials and representatives of foreign 

governments. OIA staff said that they could not provide information on the 

outcome of all of these meetings because they were not always invited to 

attend, and because they did not always receive reports about what was 

discussed. 

OIA was not always informed about key leadership decisions on matters 

affecting the department’s international activities. For example, OIA was not 

made aware of a significant international reorganization approved by the 

Secretary. When DHS was created and the INS was restructured into three 

separate agencies, the function of paroling improperly documented 

immigrants into the United States for humanitarian purposes was assigned to 

ICE. In January 2007, the Secretary notified Congress of plans to transfer this 

function from ICE to USCIS. Because OIA was not informed of the transfer, 

the office did not relate this information to international affairs units in ICE 

and USCIS. Coupled with other missed opportunities to communicate, this 

resulted in ICE and USCIS international affairs offices learning of the transfer 

two weeks before it was scheduled to take place. 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

Page 28 
A few current and former OIA employees told us that the office had been 

excluded from some policy deliberations with a significant international 

bearing. Two former OIA employees said that their office’s exclusion from 

international policy deliberations was intentional. One said that international 

affairs was seen as a nuisance to the domestic security agenda, and that, as a 

result, OIA was sometimes left out of the clearance process on key policy 

documents with international dimensions. Another former employee believed 

that OIA had been excluded from key discussions because DHS policymakers 

perceived that OIA often came down on the Department of State side of the 

issues or advocated for the interests of other nations. And, indeed, one Policy 

Office employee we spoke with outside of OIA shared her perception that 

OIA staff tended to advocate for an overly conciliatory approach in dealing 

with other nations on security questions, and said that a more tough-minded, 

national security approach was required. 

We could not determine whether OIA staff had, in fact, been deliberately 

excluded from policy discussions with an international bearing. No one 

outside of OIA acknowledged having intentionally excluded the office. It was 

apparent, however, that DHS staff did not have a shared understanding of 

what policy questions were appropriate for OIA engagement. The office’s 

policy purview is not clearly defined or uniformly understood. 

A large proportion of DHS work has international implications. These 

implications are wide ranging, from immigration admissibility decisions 

affecting foreign nationals, infrastructure protection and export control 

matters involving foreign firms, and matters of trade law or security policy 

with foreign governments. Some DHS staff we spoke with took an expansive 

view of which of these issues should fall under OIA purview, while others 

imagined a more narrow focus for OIA. One OIA representative sought 

notification of domestic worksite immigration raids because the raids usually 

result in a large number of deportations affecting other nations. By contrast, 

two Policy Office officials outside of OIA said that they sought to involve 

OIA in policy discussions only if the matter directly involved a foreign 

government. 

OIA access to information is also confounded by limits on its access to key 

communications. The Diplomatic Telecommunications Service is a secure 

system of integrated data networks that serves as the primary information link 

between U.S. missions abroad and U.S.-based foreign affairs policymakers. 

Subscribers to the system communicate with each other in writing via “cable 

traffic.” Domestic foreign affairs staff and embassies use the system to 

circulate draft policy materials for comment; provide reporting on significant 

political and economic developments, and meetings; and sign off on the travel 

of U.S. government representatives on official business abroad. 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

Page 29 
 

OIA staff who are cleared to access classified cables cannot do so in their 

primary workspace because it is not properly secured or wired to support 

system access. Instead, they search for Department of State cables using 

computer terminals elsewhere in the building. When using these terminals, 

OIA staff cannot receive cables or other message traffic directly and cannot 

transmit it because they have not been provided accounts to do so through the 

Automated Message Handling System that DHS uses for those purposes. 

This has unfortunate effects on other departments’ perception of DHS as a 

serious player in the international affairs arena. DHS prestige was adversely 

affected, for example, when a cable was sent to the DHS Secretary but never 

received by OIA. When Department of State counterparts asked about the 

cable at a later date, OIA had to acknowledge that it had no knowledge of it. 

Without ready access to cables, OIA relies on others, sometimes those in other 

departments, to alert it of transmissions of interest. 

The office’s limited access to the system also has a crippling effect on its 

ability to disseminate information in support of its coordinating function. 

Until recently, OIA could not readily request clearances from U.S. embassies 

for senior DHS officials to visit counterparts abroad.56 When DHS is 

preparing to publicize a major policy decision affecting other nations, OIA 

cannot effectively send a message to alert affected embassies and Department 

of State bureaus. Nor can OIA use the system to relay to embassies what 

transpired in meetings between senior DHS officials and their foreign 

counterparts. 

At least two other DHS component international affairs offices have access to 

Department of State cables and the ability to transmit cables of their own 

through the department’s Automated Message Handling System. OIA should 

have this access as well. 

We recommend that the Assistant Secretary for Policy: 

Recommendation #3: Ensure that all cleared Office of International Affairs 

staff have regular access to the Automated Message Handling System or a 

similar system with the capability of sending and receiving cables or other 

message traffic. 

OIA Has a Limited Ability to Direct Components 

OIA has little authority to direct DHS component international affairs offices. 

Component requests to alter their international footprint must be provided to 

56 The Department of State recently created an online portal for government agencies to submit country clearance 

requests as an alternative to the traditional submission of country clearance cables. 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

Page 30 
 

OIA for review. OIA, in turn, provides a recommendation to the Deputy 

Secretary for him to approve or deny requests before they are submitted to the 

Department of State.57 According to a DHS management directive, 

component managers are also to seek the office’s recommendation before 

approving staff attendance at international meetings and conferences, 

however, OIA consideration has not, in practice, been requested.58 Other than 

these two notification requirements, one of which has not been observed, OIA 

has no formal authorities with respect to component international affairs 

offices. Limits on OIA authority with respect to these offices have undercut 

its viability as a coordinator of the department’s international enterprise on 

several occasions. 

In one area in which OIA has some limited authority, it has exercised that 

authority to positive effect. As noted earlier, DHS components must submit 

planned changes to their international staff footprint to OIA for review and 

comment. These submissions were initially made on a piecemeal basis. To 

ensure that components planned international staffing changes for the year 

ahead, OIA required component submissions be provided annually. OIA also 

asked DHS components to perform rightsizing reviews of their staff footprints 

and project their deployments three years out. With a single submission 

coming in from each of the components simultaneously, OIA has been able to 

broker a few embassy personnel swaps such that one component can move 

into embassy slots being vacated by another component. 

In other areas, where OIA has no authority over component international 

affairs offices, the office has not been able to provide needed coordination. 

OIA coordination was absent in the apportioning of legacy INS international 

functions among USCIS, ICE, and CBP. In 2003, a tribureau commission 

consisting of representatives of these three agencies reportedly arrived at a 

consensus about how to apportion immigration responsibilities abroad. This 

consensus was not formalized, however, until four years later, when the 

international affairs managers of USCIS, ICE, and CBP jointly sent a cable to 

U.S. embassies around the world documenting the final distribution of 

international immigration responsibilities. In the intervening years, the 

consensus view of what immigration functions components were to perform 

abroad was not always observed. USCIS and ICE international staff, as well 

as staff in embassy Consular Affairs offices, routinely performed immigration 

functions now ascribed to CBP. CBP and ICE staff sometimes assumed 

responsibility for what are now USCIS functions, and USCIS staff abroad 

performed immigration duties that ICE had agreed to do. 

While OIA staff were aware of these issues, they did not work to resolve them 

because they did not believe that they had the authority to do so. The office 

57 DHS, Management Directive 3400: Review and Approval of Foreign DHS Positions, October 30, 2003. 

58 DHS, Management Directive 3160: Attendance at Meetings and Conferences, March 2003. 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

Page 31 
 

did not push the agencies to formalize their commitments to perform 

particular international immigration functions. Nor did OIA see to it that the 

three agencies assumed day-to-day responsibility for the immigration 

functions they had committed to perform. While DHS component 

international affairs managers rarely advocate for more DHS involvement in 

their work, more than one said that this was an area in which DHS leadership 

would have been helpful. 

OIA staff believed that they could not effectively intervene when confronted 

with international staffing and space disputes between DHS components, 

either. Communication between USCIS, ICE, and CBP managers at one 

embassy reportedly broke down over disagreements on office space and which 

component manager would have the DHS attaché title. When CBP later 

sought to deploy a representative to another embassy, the ICE attaché in 

country reportedly fought the deployment even after the CBP representative 

had arrived. 

OIA Needs More Information to Engage Other Nations and International 

Organizations Constructively 

OIA is responsible for expanding foreign country and international 

organization support for DHS. According to the department’s website, OIA 

“engages foreign allies ... in guiding security agreements that further support 

the mission of the Department” and “builds strong support for actions against 

global terrorism among nations and international organizations.”59 

In line with these responsibilities, OIA has participated in coordinating DHS 

engagement international organizations and forums such as the Asia Pacific 

Economic Cooperation, Group of Eight, Four Country Conference, North 

Atlantic Treaty Organization, or the European Union. It also has worked to 

advance international agreements in DHS mission areas. OIA has been 

particularly active with Russia in this regard, with which it has pursued 

memoranda of understanding in connection with the work of the Secret 

Service, FEMA, and Federal Air Marshals. Component representatives 

characterized OIA work in this area as “excellent” and instrumental in 

bridging gaps. 

OIA staff, however, perceived that they could do more on behalf of DHS in 

this area. Several staff said that OIA is not as engaged in multilateral 

organizations as desirable. These and other DHS international affairs 

representatives recognized the benefits that participation in these 

organizations can have for DHS. Component offices have, for example, been 

able to work with other nations to improve security in global industries such 

59 Office of International Relations Mission and Responsibilities, Department of Homeland Security, last updated 

February 8, 2008, available online at: www.dhs.gov/xabout/structure/editorial_0874.shtm. 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

Page 32 
 

 

as aviation and shipping by assisting them in meeting security standards 

established by multilateral organizations. OIA representatives perceived that 

there were other similar opportunities for DHS in other mission areas and 

anticipated that more involvement in multilateral organizations would help 

them identify such opportunities. In particular, they cited ambitions to extend 

the department’s engagement with the United Nations, Organization for 

Economic Cooperation and Development, Organization of American States, 

and International Organization on Migration. Recent increases in OIA 

staffing have put such multilateral engagement within reach. 

Another area OIA staff identified for future improvement related to the 

office’s awareness of international negotiations and agreements. DHS 

components have no obligation to obtain OIA concurrence with international 

security agreements, or to notify OIA of their intent to pursue such 

agreements. As a result, OIA staff said their office sometimes finds out about 

international agreements negotiated by DHS components after they have been 

finalized or when they are in late stages of development, after primary 

negotiations have been completed. Some present and former OIA 

representatives told us that in cases in which components had involved OIA in 

the development of security agreements with other nations, they had typically 

done so as an afterthought. 

OIA representatives said that component-negotiated draft agreements they 

learned about sometimes did not fully address the interests of other 

components. As an example, one OIA employee observed that the Coast 

Guard had recently negotiated an agreement with Panama on fly-over and 

landing rights for its aircraft. Although CBP has an interest in fly-over and 

landing rights in Panama as well, the Coast Guard did not initially address 

CBP interests in its draft agreement. A similar dynamic played out for several 

years with Customs Mutual Assistance Agreements. Between 2003 and late 

2006, newly signed mutual assistance and information sharing agreements 

with foreign customs administrations identified CBP, and not ICE, as a party 

to the agreements. According to some ICE representatives abroad, this 

hampered their ability to obtain information from foreign customs officials. 

A recent DHS policy is likely to reduce the number of component-negotiated 

international agreements that neglect other DHS interests. The DHS February 

2007 Policy for Internal Information Exchange and Sharing requires that all 

future “information-access and -sharing agreements with outside entities will 

be negotiated and entered into on behalf of the Department as a whole, not on 

behalf of an individual DHS component.”60 

60 DHS, “DHS Policy for Internal Information Exchange and Sharing,” February 1, 2007, available at 

http://www.dhs.gov/xabout/laws/gc_1171048715234.shtm. 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

Page 33 
 

 

While this policy change affects many international agreements negotiated by 

DHS components, it does not affect agreements and provisions of agreements 

that do not relate to sharing information within the department. Because the 

Coast Guard agreement with Panama discussed earlier primarily relates to 

operational matters rather than information sharing, for example, it is not 

covered under the policy. While components are now required to address 

DHS-wide information sharing equities, they may continue to neglect other 

DHS policy interests in negotiations with other governments. Under the 

current arrangement, one DHS component could thus agree to activities in 

support of a foreign government that thwart vital efforts on the part of another 

component. 

At the moment, there are no assurances in place to prevent this from 

happening. OIA could conceivably vet international agreements with these 

considerations in mind, but cannot do so now in all cases because it is not 

made aware of all ongoing negotiations. Just as OIA does not have a 

complete picture of present negotiations, it operates without a comprehensive 

list of past international agreements to which DHS is a party. 

Under an arrangement called the “Circular 175 Procedure,” all U.S. 

government entities must obtain advance authorization from the Department 

of State to negotiate or sign agreements with foreign governments.61 This 

arrangement allows the Department of State to fulfill its obligation to inform 

Congress of all international agreements signed by U.S. government 

agencies.62 DHS component international affairs offices reported that they 

comply with this procedure. DHS could enhance the ability of OIA to 

coordinate such agreements by ensuring that all DHS component requests for 

Circular 175 authorization are vetted by OIA before they are submitted to the 

Department of State. 

We recommend that the Assistant Secretary for Policy: 

Recommendation #4: Require components to notify the Office of 

International Affairs of their intent to pursue negotiations with foreign 

governments and review resulting draft agreements. 

DHS Should Consider Existing Authority Models in Determining What 

Authorities to Provide OIA 

As we have noted, at present, OIA has very little authority over component 

international programs, has constrained visibility into pertinent policy 

development and operational matters, and is not well-positioned to ensure that 

61 22 C.F.R. § 181.4. 

62 1 U.S.C. § 112b. 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

Page 34 
component-negotiated international agreements advance departmental 

interests. These limitations impede the office’s efforts to fulfill its role as a 

coordinator of the department’s international enterprise and its responsibility 

to guide security agreements that support the department’s mission. DHS 

leadership can remedy this condition by providing OIA with expanded 

authorities. 

DHS could provide OIA with expanded authorities over and involvement in 

the international activities of other DHS offices in many different ways. More 

than one of these approaches will satisfy the department’s interest in 

providing the basis for a better coordinated international enterprise. Although, 

we do not offer an exact prescription for change in this area, we do submit 

information on past solutions to similar questions of authority to the Assistant 

Secretary for Policy for his consideration in identifying an appropriate 

solution. 

The question of what authorities DHS-level units are to exercise in overseeing 

and managing the related activities of other offices in the department has been 

addressed before within DHS. DHS management directives and delegations 

have established the “dotted-line” authorities that a number of DHS-level 

offices exercise over relevant portions of other units in the department. 

Management Directive 8110, “Intelligence Integration and Management,” for 

example, sets out the authorities the DHS Chief Intelligence Officer can use to 

direct and manage the intelligence units in other parts of the department, such 

as CBP and ICE. Under this arrangement, the Chief Intelligence Officer 

participates in the selection and evaluation of senior intelligence officials in 

other components, and sets training standards for intelligence officers 

throughout the department. Similar authority arrangements are in place for 

the DHS managers for information technology, security, human capital, and 

procurement. Table 1 below summarizes some of the authorities these 

officials wield. As is evident below, these officials have significantly more 

authorities at their disposal than the Assistant Secretary for International 

Affairs. 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

Page 35 
 

Table 1: DHS Dotted-Line Authority Comparison 

DHS Dotted-Line Authority Models 

Authorities of Office Holder CIO CSO CINT CHCO CPO A/S OIA 

Advises Secretary and/or Deputy Secretary z z z

External Relations z z

3⁄4 Represents DHS in external forums 

3⁄4 Coordinates with non-DHS agencies 

z

z z

Chairs Internal DHS Council z z z

General Direction of Programs z z z z z

3⁄4 Performs strategic planning 

3⁄4 Sets priorities 

3⁄4 Sets guidelines and standards 

3⁄4 Sets processes and procedures 

3⁄4 Funds programs and activities 

z

z z

z z

z z

z

z

z

z

z

z

z

z

z

z

z

z

z

Reviews and/or Advises on Component Budgets z

Component Organizational Structure z z

3⁄4 Notified of organizational changes in area z z

Component Directors in Area z z z z

3⁄4 Sets qualification standards for position 

3⁄4 Recruits candidates 

3⁄4 Interviews candidates 

3⁄4 Participates in selection 

3⁄4 Provides input into performance objectives 

3⁄4 Provides input into performance rating 

z z

z

z z

z z

z z

z z

z

z

z

z

z

z

z

z

Other Component Staff in Area z z z z z z

3⁄4 Approves designation of staff or staff changes 

3⁄4 Reviews & advises on number of staff 

3⁄4 Receives reporting on staff roles & functions 

3⁄4 Sets training or qualification requirements for staff 

3⁄4 Sets training program standards & policies 

3⁄4 Performs education & awareness programs for staff 

z

z z

z

z z

z

z

z

z

z

z

z

z

z

z

z

z

Reviews and/or Approves Component Policies & Procedures z z z z z

Component Information z z z

3⁄4 Receives requested reporting 

3⁄4 Collects information regularly 

z

z

z

z

CIO – Chief Information Officer; CSO – Chief Security Officer; CINT – Chief Intelligence Officer; CHCO – Chief Human Capital 

Officer; CPO – Chief Procurement Officer; A/S OIA – Assistant Secretary for International Affairs. 

Past DHS approaches to establishing dotted-line authorities over aspects of 

component operations can be instructive, but the unique features of 

international work merit special consideration in determining what authorities 

to assign OIA. Certain standard features of international work, such as the use 

of cable and message traffic for communications or the preparation of trip and 

meeting reports, may be considered as avenues for OIA to gather needed 

information or exert appropriate authorities. In the cases of cables, for 

example, DHS could require that all cable traffic between DHS component 

offices and embassies abroad be distributed to OIA for informational 

purposes. 

Other departments have faced the challenge of managing their international 

affairs operations and interests. The management solutions they developed 

also can be weighed in determining what authorities to provide OIA in 

managing the department’s international enterprise. 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

Page 36 
In early 2007, the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) OIG conducted 

an informal review of international affairs programs in seven other cabinet 

departments to identify common practices for managing and coordinating 

international activities that EPA could adopt. The EPA OIG identified the 

following four practices common to the departments it studied: 

•	 First, each department had established a formal, department-wide 

definition of “international activities” to provide consistency in 

determining what activities fell under the purview of their offices of 

international affairs. 

•	 Second, the international affairs offices of these departments all chair 

regular meetings of international program staff from other major 

divisions. 

•	 Third, international affairs offices in the seven departments each 

reviewed or had signatory power over all departmental international 

agreements, and maintained a database of these agreements. 

•	 Finally, all of these departments’ international affairs offices 

maintained visibility into the international travel of employees in other 

offices in the department. 

OIA should be provided the tools necessary to perform strategic management 

and coordination functions. Whatever international management arrangement 

the department embraces, it should at minimum: 

•	 Address OIA needs for enhanced situational awareness by providing 

for OIA authority to require some component international affairs 

reporting; 

•	 Establish a process for OIA to direct component action in some 

circumstances, such as to: facilitate multicomponent international 

initiatives, deconflict potentially overlapping efforts abroad, and 

resolve cross-component disagreements related to international 

operations; and 

•	 Ensure that components advise OIA in advance of any official travel to 

foreign countries on the part of senior component executives, and any 

visits of foreign officials who are received by senior executive officials 

within the component. 

In addition, departmental direction in this area should clearly establish what 

international matters are to trigger OIA notification, consultation, or approval. 

For component activities requiring OIA consultation or approval, 

consideration should be given to ensure that OIA input and decisions are 

timely and do not produce excessive delays. Establishing a fixed, but 

reasonable timeframe for OIA comment or approval would be one approach to 

mitigate such delays. 

The authorities conferred on OIA should be limited in other respects, as well. 

OIA does not have the staff or expertise to direct DHS component 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

Page 37 
 

international activities on a day-to-day, operational basis. This function 

should continue to be the responsibility of component international affairs 

units. 

We recommend that the Assistant Secretary for Policy: 

Recommendation #5: Clearly define the Office of International Affairs’ 

purview and provide it with some authorities vis-à-vis DHS component 

international programs and offices to include, at minimum, the authority to: 

solicit component reporting; ensure that the office receives notice of 

component senior executive official travel to foreign countries and high-level 

foreign official visits; and direct component action in some circumstances. 

Systematized, Well-Funded International Training, Technical Assistance, 

and Information Exchange Activities Would Advance the DHS Mission 

The U.S. government provides international training and technical assistance 

(T&TA) to, and pursues information exchange with, foreign counterparts to 

help build and sustain well-governed states abroad. Coordinated through the 

Department of State foreign assistance process, these exchanges build on 

existing partnerships and open the door to new relationships. Such exchanges 

can also enhance security cooperation, promote coordination of activities in 

support of shared aims, and indirectly strengthen our security posture by 

bolstering that of other nations. 

Exchanges with U.S. government agencies are often prized by other nations. 

As the U.S. government’s third-largest department, DHS brings together an 

enormous breadth of operational experience and technical expertise. Other 

governments value the opportunity to gather operational and technical insights 

in areas of DHS core competency. Indeed, DHS is a global leader in a 

number of areas of public administration and a repository for many types of 

information valued by its international counterparts. 

Likewise, other nations have much to offer DHS. They face many of the same 

security challenges confronting the United States and have, in many cases, 

adopted sophisticated and well-considered solutions to these challenges. DHS 

can use information about these solutions to help shape security policies. 

Moreover, other countries have access to information about some of the same 

risks that apply to DHS operations and the security of the country as a whole. 

Consistent with an awareness of the shared benefits of engagement in 

international T&TA and information exchange, DHS components are active in 

this area. DHS components, however, have little independent authority or 

resources to pursue international T&TA and exchange, and thus usually rely 

on other departments to initiate related efforts. As a result, the department’s 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

Page 38 
approach to international engagements of this kind tends to have a reactive 

character. Component activities are further constrained by the fact that DHS 

components do not always set aside resources for international T&TA 

activities, and staff best positioned to identify T&TA opportunities are not 

always familiar with potential funding sources. Finally, international T&TA 

and exchange activities that are undertaken by DHS components are not 

sufficiently directed. 

DHS Involvement in International T&TA and Information Exchange 

Activities 

DHS components participate in a number of international T&TA and 

information exchange activities. CBP and the Coast Guard have extensive 

international T&TA programs, while ICE, Secret Service, FEMA, and TSA all 

have significant engagements of their own. US-VISIT, S&T, and FLETC are 

also involved in noteworthy international exchanges. 

CBP international T&TA programs address screening for weapons of mass 

destruction, counter-narcotics activities, port security, customs processing, 

border enforcement, and immigration inspection, among other matters. CBP 

performs border control capacity building activities in more than two-dozen 

countries to prevent the proliferation of nuclear and radiological materials. 

CBP has deployed 19 employees to Iraq to train on border management 

techniques. 

CBP is particularly active in the Western Hemisphere. Its Border Patrol has 

sponsored a number of longstanding bilateral training efforts, such as with 

Honduras, where it works with the National Police. CBP maintains an 

information sharing relationship with Mexico through which its National 

Targeting Center receives advance information on airline passengers bound 

for Mexico. The National Targeting Center uses this information to help 

Mexican authorities identify high-risk travelers. The National Targeting 

Center cultivated a similar information sharing arrangement with Caribbean 

nations during the Cricket World Cup. Along the northern border, CBP works 

through International Border Enforcement Teams. These teams operate in 

Canada and the United States to promote information sharing on mutual 

threats, and participate in joint training on intelligence and investigative 

techniques. CBP also works with the Canadians through Project North Star, 

an initiative that draws together law enforcement personnel from both sides of 

the border to share information on terrorism threats, organized crime, money 

laundering, and drug and firearms trafficking. 

Coast Guard international T&TA activities are primarily provided through 

mobile training teams that deliver training abroad. These teams engage in 

about 100 international training missions per year on a wide array of Coast 

Guard disciplines. The Coast Guard also offers several hundred courses a 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

Page 39 
year to foreign nationals at its facilities in the United States. In addition, it 

maintains a technical assistance team in Puerto Rico to assist Eastern 

Caribbean nations to maintain their naval and coast guard fleets. Coast Guard 

personnel operating in the Persian Gulf also provide training. Coast Guard 

law enforcement detachments riding on Iraqi naval vessels, for example, train 

counterparts on vessel boarding and search techniques. Sometimes the Coast 

Guard participates in joint exercises with foreign counterparts. Last year, for 

example, the Coast Guard exercised with the Mexican Navy on oil platform 

security in the Gulf of Campeche. Further, as part of its Foreign Military 

Sales agreements with other countries’ navies and coast guards, the Coast 

Guard sometimes provides training and technical assistance on vessel 

operation and maintenance. 

ICE and the Secret Service participate in a number of international T&TA 

activities, as well. These activities are geared to improve the law enforcement 

and investigative capabilities of foreign counterparts, and build relationships 

with local authorities. Some ICE offices abroad have extensive T&TA 

engagements with their counterparts. In Mexico City, for example, ICE has 

provided T&TA to Mexican counterparts on intellectual property rights 

enforcement, cybercrime, antismuggling operations, and staff integrity checks 

using polygraphs. In addition, ICE sponsors several local law enforcement 

units abroad staffed by officers who have been trained and equipped by ICE to 

support efforts to combat human trafficking and money laundering in 

collaboration with ICE. For its part, the Secret Service trains foreign 

counterparts on investigative techniques they can apply to currency 

counterfeiting and computer crimes-related cases. 

FEMA and TSA pursue international T&TA activities in emergency 

management, airport security, and transportation security. FEMA provides 

incident command training to India and has a cooperative emergency 

management relationship with Canada and Mexico. TSA representatives 

overseas have provided T&TA to foreign counterparts in Indonesia and Sri 

Lanka, and its Federal Air Marshals have hosted U.S.-based training for 

foreign air marshals. These efforts are not as extensive as those of CBP, the 

Coast Guard, ICE, and Secret Service. 

US-VISIT and S&T are pursuing international exchanges, as well. The 

US-VISIT program office has developed a relationship with the United 

Kingdom’s Visa and Immigration Services bureau by detailing a biometrics 

technical expert to the United Kingdom. The technical expert is co-located 

with United Kingdom counterparts developing a system similar to 

US-VISIT. S&T has posted an employee to London to identify research 

partners in Europe and Eurasia and spot technological breakthroughs that can 

be applied to DHS S&T challenges. S&T has created institutional 

frameworks to monitor and promote cooperative homeland security research 

efforts with Canada, the United Kingdom, and Australia; and signed homeland 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

Page 40 
 

 

 

 

security S&T exchange agreements with Sweden and Singapore. In addition, 

it has participated in and hosted international conferences and workshops to 

promote information sharing on homeland security research and development. 

FLETC provides limited foreign law enforcement access to its U.S.-based 

courses, and actively supports Department of State-funded International Law 

Enforcement Academies overseas in Botswana, El Salvador, Hungary, and 

Thailand. These academies provide training and technical assistance to 

foreign officials to enhance their law enforcement capabilities. FLETC 

coordinates with ICE, CBP, and the Secret Service to provide subject matter 

experts to deliver training to foreign counterparts at the international 

academies. In addition, FLETC program managers are posted to the 

academies in El Salvador and Botswana. 

DHS components participate in a wide range of international T&TA and 

information exchange activities. Despite their breadth, these exchanges 

cumulatively represent a small proportion of the overall U.S. government 

commitment to international training and exchange. A federal working group 

that maintains an inventory of international exchanges, The Interagency 

Working Group on U.S. Government-Sponsored International Exchanges and 

Training, observed in its most recent program inventory that DHS 

international training and exchange reached only 2% of foreign participants in 

U.S. government activities of this kind.63 

DHS Primarily Depends on Other Departments to Authorize and Fund 

International T&TA and Exchange Activities 

DHS international T&TA and information exchange activities are most often 

initiated by other federal departments. Generally, DHS does not have the 

authority or funding to independently pursue these activities. DHS 

international T&TA activities are primarily funded by DOD and the 

Department of State.64 

DHS has limited authority to pursue international T&TA activities outside of 

Department of State or DOD programs. CBP has authority to provide 

international T&TA that relates to its efforts to support its foreign Container 

Security Initiative partners and promote international implementation of port 

security antiterrorism measures at select ports abroad.65 Within TSA, the 

63 Interagency Working Group on U.S. Government-Sponsored International Exchanges and Training, FY 2006 Annual 

Report, p. 14. (http://www.iawg.gov/rawmedia_repository/426ce8ac_156c_4af1_891e_b6fa33a1d2cc) 64 The bulk of Department of State support for DHS international T&TA programming is provided through its 

International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs bureau, the U.S. Agency for International Development, and its 

Export Control and Border Security and Anti-Terrorism Assistance programs. 65 CBP T&TA authorities are defined in the SAFE Port Act of 2006 (P.L. 109-347), § 233; codified at 6 U.S.C. § 983 and 

46 U.S.C. § 70110. 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

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Federal Air Marshal Service is authorized to provide air marshal training to 

foreign law enforcement personnel.66 

The Coast Guard was constrained in its ability to provide international T&TA 

to the extent that, until 2006, it was not authorized to provide training or 

technical assistance to foreign states during normal Coast Guard operations.67 

Its new authority in this area permits the Coast Guard to provide technical 

assistance, including law enforcement and maritime security training, to 

foreign navies, coast guards, and other maritime authorities in conjunction 

with normal operations.68 While the Coast Guard now has the authority to 

provide this type of basic assistance, it still does not have the authority to host 

international conferences without Department of State or DOD participation. 

The DHS Office of International Affairs, S&T, and Secret Service also have 

limited authorities to conduct international T&TA activities. 

These limited authorities bring little in the way of dedicated funding. DHS 

appropriations and associated committee reports do not allocate any funds to 

the department specifically to provide for international T&TA or exchange. 

Instead, DHS appropriations actively cap Secret Service expenditures on the 

provision of technical assistance and equipment to foreign law enforcement 

agencies in counterfeiting investigations at $100,000.69 

DHS Faces Three Constraints in Conducting International T&TA and 

Information Exchange Activities 

We observed three constraints on DHS international T&TA and information 

exchange activities. 

First, DHS participation in international T&TA is typically limited to 

engagements of interest to its primary funders, DOD and the Department of 

State. Several DHS staff said that because DOD and Department of State 

priorities are not always consistent with DHS priorities, this dependence has 

the effect of leaving some DHS international interests unserved. 

The second constraint is the result of insufficient information about available 

sources of funding. DHS international orientation programs for staff bound 

for international assignments provide little information on funding available to 

support T&TA. As a result, DHS staff have not taken advantage of that 

funding to the fullest extent. 

66 Federal Air Marshal Service authority to provide international training was provided through the Intelligence Reform 

and Terrorist Prevention Act (P.L. 108-458) § 4018; codified at 49 U.S.C. § 44917. 67 14 U.S.C. § 149. 68 Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation Act of 2006 (P.L. 109-241), § 202. 69 See P.L. 108-90, 108-334, 109-90, and 109-295. 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

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Third, as a feature of their own internal resource planning efforts, several 

DHS components do not specifically allocate sufficient technical and staff 

resources to international T&TA and information exchange. In fact, some 

DHS components have not specifically dedicated any such resources to 

international T&TA and exchange. FEMA and CBP, for example, pull 

subject matter experts from their domestic operational divisions to support 

international T&TA commitments. The TSA Training Division has no 

resources specifically devoted to training or delivering foreign technical 

assistance. Meanwhile, TSA staff in some locations abroad reported that they 

were aware of many T&TA opportunities and had received a large volume of 

requests, but could not properly address their foreign counterparts’ needs. 

Because several DHS components do not allocate resources to international 

T&TA and exchange, vital staff and subject matter expertise support for these 

activities are often solicited on an as needed basis. As a result, international 

initiatives compete for resources that have already been programmed to 

support DHS components’ domestic efforts, sometimes without success. One 

manager explained that CBP had received funding to support a counternarcotics initiative in Afghanistan, but did not have enough staff available to 

provide needed training. 

Resource Constraints Result in Missed Opportunities for DHS 

Resource constraints on the department’s international T&TA and exchange 

efforts appear to have resulted in missed opportunities for DHS. These 

missed opportunities can be appreciated in several ways. 

A few international training programs valued by DHS components have 

lapsed due to resource constraints. For example, a key Coast Guard program 

in the Caribbean expired as a result of a combination of declining external 

funding for the program and a shortage of dedicated Coast Guard resources. 

The Coast Guard provided training and technical assistance to Caribbean 

navies and coast guards between 1999 and 2006, when the vessel it employed 

for these operations, the Caribbean Support Tender, was decommissioned. 

Because external funding for the program is no longer available and because 

the Coast Guard has not replaced the vessel, related training and technical 

assistance efforts have ceased. 

Meanwhile, some CBP staff attributed the decline of a significant program in 

Mexico, Operation Halcon, to difficulties competing for aviation resources. A 

collaborative binational narcotics interdiction effort that began in 1990, 

Operation Halcon had long engaged CBP Air and Marine pilots and aircraft to 

track small planes in Mexico suspected of transporting narcotics to the U.S. 

border. CBP Air and Marine resource contributions to the program have 

declined. At one time, Operation Halcon activities in Mexico had drawn on 

CBP staff and aircraft support from six different Air and Marine Air 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

Page 43 
Branches. By 2006, however, Air and Marine contributions to the effort had 

ceased from all but one Air Branch. Recently, the inability to arrive at an 

agreement with Mexican authorities on the renewal of aspects of the program 

has effectively put Operation Halcon activities on hiatus. 

The effect of resource constraints on DHS international T&TA and exchange 

activities is evident from cases in which DHS components are interested in an 

exchange, but have no choice but to turn it down. A FLETC program 

manager, for example, estimated that FLETC denies about 10% of 

international T&TA requests because of limitations in class space or access to 

subject matter experts. CBP also reported denying T&TA requests because 

there was no funding associated with the request. A senior training official in 

CBP attributed his agency’s limited commitment to immigration-related 

T&TA to CBP’s lack of control over any associated funding resources. A 

TSA representative abroad reported similar difficulties. 

The adverse effect of DHS resource constraints on its international T&TA and 

information exchanges is evident in those activities in which it has not been 

included. Some DHS-related international T&TA activities occur without 

DHS involvement. Although this was not an issue in most of the embassies 

we visited, at one mission we encountered several T&TA efforts that could 

have benefited by more DHS engagement. At that mission, DOD and the 

Department of State had initiated several programs that linked to DHS 

missions without seeking sufficient DHS input. While DOD and the 

Department of State are entitled to do so, the resulting T&TA activities may 

not represent U.S. government best practice and do not do all they could to 

promote the spread of DHS-compatible security practices. 

One example of such a missed opportunity at that mission was the U.S.­

sponsored development and implementation of an inbound immigration 

system for the host nation that captures information about travel documents 

and takes a photograph of individuals coming into the country. Unfortunately, 

CBP and US-VISIT were not consulted in the development of the system, and 

it does not capture biometric information that could have served as the basis 

for future sharing with U.S. immigration systems. 

Other similar cases were evident at the same post. The U.S. embassy had 

recently funded a border waterway patrol effort without consulting CBP or the 

Coast Guard. DOD had conducted a security exercise at a major seaport 

without engaging the Coast Guard, the designated DHS lead for port security. 

The embassy funded Trafficking-in-Persons programs, developed by local 

organizations, without significant input from ICE. Remarkably, even though 

the host government considered reorganizing its border and security units into 

a department similar to DHS, the embassy did not arrange for DHS officials to 

meet with local officials to share information on how DHS is structured, or the 

challenges it faced in reorganizing. 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

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The effects of resource constraints on DHS international T&TA and 

information exchanges is evident in T&TA and information sharing gaps 

identified by DHS staff. DHS staff provided examples of areas where DHS 

was missing opportunities to effectively engage other countries. One manager 

said that Southeast Asia is inundated with fraudulent documents, and T&TA 

programs to assist local authorities counter the proliferation of fraudulent 

documents could be valuable. International affairs managers in the 

department observed opportunities for TSA, ICE, CBP, and the Coast Guard 

in the Caribbean region. 

Several ICE and Secret Service representatives said they believed their 

organizations were missing valuable opportunities to build relationships with 

foreign law enforcement counterparts by not pursuing more international 

T&TA. They noted that other U.S. law enforcement agencies such as the 

Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the U.S. Drug Enforcement 

Administration (DEA) performed extensive T&TA activities, and expressed 

the view that these exchanges had helped those agencies develop key contacts 

that provided valuable assistance when those agencies needed it. These local 

contacts are often vital in the international setting, where U.S. law 

enforcement officers generally do not have the authority to conduct 

investigations. 

Further, some ICE and Secret Service staff perceive that the disparity between 

their agency’s T&TA activities and those of the FBI and DEA placed them at 

a disadvantage. They believe that their agencies’ lesser commitment to 

international T&TA may have prompted some counterpart law enforcement 

agencies to provide less case support to their agencies than they would to the 

FBI and DEA. An ICE attaché described the DEA international annual drug 

enforcement conference as an effective venue for promoting DEA missions 

and activities, and building contacts with foreign counterparts. He said that 

ICE should do something similar on money laundering and customs 

investigations to help publicize his agency’s profile in these areas. 

DHS International T&TA and Information Exchange Activities Are Not 

Sufficiently Directed 

While DHS has experienced some noteworthy international T&TA resource 

constraints, the department has not effectively directed its limited international 

T&TA resources. 

Most component staff we spoke with could not identify international T&TA 

priorities for their component, or DHS as a whole. Although we encountered 

a few staff in DHS components who had considered what the T&TA priorities 

might be for their component and had sought to advance T&TA activities in 

those areas, there was no concerted effort to do the same at the component 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

Page 45 
 

level. A senior international affairs manager in TSA, for example, said that 

his organization does not have a formal plan for its international T&TA 

activities, just a general awareness that it should be doing more in certain 

countries. An ICE attaché we spoke with reported that his headquarters office 

had made “no concerted effort” to advance ICE aims through T&TA. 

Some DHS staff viewed the absence of component planning on international 

T&TA as an outgrowth of Department of State and DOD command of these 

efforts. One OIA representative said that he thought DHS components had 

fallen into a “service-provider’s mindset” on international T&TA as a result of 

their dependence on outside authorities and funding; DHS components had 

become accustomed to simply responding to requests, rather than proactively 

considering what they could do to further their interests. A Coast Guard 

representative said that because of the Coast Guard’s limited planning in this 

area, his organization was being more responsive to the priorities of other 

departments than to those of his agency. 

Some DHS staff linked the need for international T&TA planning to the fact 

that the department has not articulated its international goals and priorities 

clearly. DHS has not provided strategic guidance that reflects an interest in 

promoting international T&TA and information exchange. 

Since it moved to create DHS, Congress has appreciated the need for 

management efforts to advance DHS involvement in international T&TA and 

information exchange activities. The Homeland Security Act provided for 

several DHS OIA responsibilities in this area, such as promoting the sharing 

of homeland security best practices and technologies, joint first responder 

training exercises, and exchanges of expertise on terrorism prevention, 

response, and crisis management.70 

Despite its responsibilities to promote information and educational exchange, 

OIA has made only modest gains advancing this aim. DHS staff we spoke 

with cited the OIA involvement in Passenger Name Record negotiations with 

the European Union as the office’s most significant contribution in this area. 

Beyond this, OIA staff provided few examples of T&TA activities and 

information exchanges they had facilitated. 

Nonetheless, some of the smaller offices in the department, such as 

US-VISIT, the National Cyber Security Division, Office of Infrastructure 

Protection, and Office of Operations Coordination, as well as the Federal Air 

Marshal Service in TSA, reported that OIA had been helpful or instrumental 

in facilitating international T&TA and information exchange activities. Large 

DHS components with major international T&TA commitments, however, 

said that they had little to no contact with OIA on their primary international 

70 Homeland Security Act of 2002 (P.L. 107-296), § 879; codified at 6 U.S.C. § 459. 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

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T&A engagements. At the time of our fieldwork, OIA did not have a catalog 

of major ongoing DHS component international T&TA and information 

exchanges, and was not regularly informed of upcoming activities of this 

nature. 

Perhaps more critically, OIA has not developed a full perspective on priorities 

for DHS engagement in international T&TA and information exchange. The 

Secretary has placed a priority on airline passenger information sharing with 

Europe, Mexico, and Caribbean nations, and exchanges with Canada on 

approaches to passenger vetting. Despite the breadth of component 

engagement in international T&TA and information exchange, DHS has not 

relayed priorities in any other areas, though OIA has begun to consider what 

some associated departmental priorities may be. OIA draft engagement plans 

with Canada and the Asia Pacific region, for example, note several areas in 

which DHS could increase information sharing and exchange. 

While OIA has yet to make major progress in this area, Congress remains 

interested in the development of DHS priorities for international exchange. 

This interest was underscored in recent legislation implementing 

recommendations of the 9/11 Commission. The law established an S&T 

Office of International Cooperative Programs to develop, among other 

activities, “strategic priorities for international cooperative activity for the 

Department in support of homeland security.”71 

DHS Should Continue to Increase Oversight and Direction of International 

Training and Technical Assistance and Information Exchange Activities 

DHS has made some recent progress toward more active stewardship of DHS 

international T&TA and information exchange. OIA recently hired a Director 

of T&TA and has plans to add additional staff in this area in the future. The 

new OIA T&TA Director has met with component international T&TA staff 

with the goal of inventorying the department’s related efforts. OIA is 

currently studying ways to track future T&TA engagements so that staff 

across the department have more awareness of the activities of their 

colleagues. Finally, OIA has started a dialogue with other DHS offices to 

help identify international T&TA priorities. 

Continued progress on this last point is critical. We encourage OIA to 

develop an international plan for T&TA activities that identifies capacity 

building and information sharing priorities for the various organizational units 

in the department. Because Congress has directed S&T to develop strategic 

priorities for international cooperative activity, OIA should closely monitor 

71 Implementing Recommendations of the 9/11 Commission Act of 2007 (P.L. 110-53), §1901(b)(1), codified at 

6 U.S.C. § 195c. 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

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S&T efforts and ensure that S&T priorities are consistent with the priorities 

identified at the department level. 

We recommend that the Assistant Secretary for International Affairs: 

Recommendation #6: Develop, in collaboration with the Science and 

Technology Directorate and consultation with DHS component international 

offices, an international training and technical assistance and information and 

education exchange plan. The plan should account for DHS informational and 

educational requirements, and be consistent with an overarching DHS 

international affairs strategy. 

DHS Should Do More to Address International Training and Technical 

Assistance Constraints 

More extensive and directed DHS international T&TA and information and 

educational exchange could improve the security posture of DHS by: 

•	 Enabling DHS to leverage the knowledge and experience of other 

nations to address domestic security weaknesses, 

•	 Improving information sharing with international partners on threats 

and risks to shared infrastructures, and 

•	 Helping fashion security layers abroad before dangerous people and 

goods reach our borders. 

As noted previously, DHS faces three primary constraints to conducting 

international T&TA activities. These constraints are DHS dependence on 

other departments to fund international T&TA activities, insufficient 

information on available sources of funding, and inadequate internal resource 

planning by DHS components for these activities. DHS is taking steps to 

address one of these three constraints. OIA has proposed a legislative change 

to expand the department’s authority to initiate international T&TA activities. 

If adopted, the proposed legislative change will authorize DHS to provide 

T&TA to foreign police, and military or civilian officials, who collaborate 

with DHS on homeland security matters. Provided funding for this purpose, 

DHS will be able to address T&TA priorities outside of the scope of DOD and 

Department of State international T&TA interests more readily. 

DHS needs to do more, however, to address other constraints on its 

international T&TA and information exchange activities. Component 

managers expressed the sense that DHS had not sufficiently leveraged 

available funding streams to support international information and educational 

exchange. They attributed shortfalls in this area to insufficient staff 

familiarity with available avenues for funding. DHS components with 

significant international T&TA activities should therefore educate staff 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

Page 48 
positioned to identify international T&TA opportunities on funding available 

to support these efforts. 

We recommend that the Commissioner of Customs and Border Protection, the 

Assistant Secretary of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the 

Commandant of the Coast Guard, the Director of the Secret Service, the 

Assistant Secretary for Transportation Security Administration, the 

Administrator for the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the Under 

Secretary for Science and Technology, the Director of the Federal Law 

Enforcement Training Center, and the Director for US-VISIT: 

Recommendation #7: Ensure that appropriate staff are able to identify 

international training and technical assistance and information exchange 

opportunities and provide guidance on how to link those opportunities to 

available funding sources. 

The department’s internal resource commitment to international T&TA and 

information exchange is often administered without the benefit of advance 

planning. As a result, DHS coordinators of international T&TA efforts must 

vie with domestic operations for key T&TA support, such as training 

development assistance and the time and travel of subject matter experts. To 

improve this dynamic, DHS components with significant international T&TA 

and information exchange activities should engage in more advance planning 

for international T&TA activities and dedicate specific resources to them. 

We recommend that the Commissioner of Customs and Border Protection, the 

Commandant of the Coast Guard, the Assistant Secretary of Immigration and 

Customs Enforcement, the Director of the Secret Service, and the Under 

Secretary for Science and Technology: 

Recommendation #8: Periodically submit a plan to the Office of 

International Affairs that specifies agency international training and technical 

assistance and information exchange goals and priorities, and that clearly 

indicates what internal resources will be dedicated to the achievement of those 

goals. 

DHS Should Refine Its Approach to International Field Requirements 

DHS international staff and interests are associated with certain requirements 

in the field. The department has attempted to address those requirements with 

a few different staff solutions. The department’s efforts in this regard leave 

room for improvement. 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

Page 49 
 

 

 

DHS International Staff and Activities Created New Field Requirements 

DHS international activities and staff created some significant field 

requirements in the past. These requirements stemmed primarily from three 

factors. First, the international aspects of the reconfiguration of INS and the 

Customs Service into CBP, ICE, and USCIS required management attention 

to facilitate a smooth transition and help define the operational relationships 

between the resulting units abroad. Second, new homeland security initiatives 

overseas required management attention to foster positive working 

relationships with foreign governments, and launch the operational features of 

these initiatives. Third, the creation of DHS, the result of the largest federal 

government reorganization in more than 50 years, created new opportunities 

for exchange, official travel support obligations, and management 

expectations in the field. 

Changes in these areas imposed certain burdens on U.S. missions abroad, such 

as staff reallocations, and realignments of workspaces and work functions 

after the reformulation of INS and the Customs Service into three DHS 

agencies. The launching of new homeland security initiatives abroad 

prompted international public relations campaigns and led to efforts to 

operationalize these initiatives on the ground. Finally, the formation of DHS 

elicited foreign governments’ interest and opened new avenues of travel and 

exchange. 

The Department of State Office of Inspector General determined that the 

responsibility these changes imposed on embassies merited a report on the 

subject. Following its inspections of nine embassies, the Department of State 

OIG reported that ambassadors faced a series of “common problems” in 

coordinating DHS activities.72 The Department of State OIG wrote that the 

DHS staff expansion in embassies that serve as regional hubs “resulted in 

significant management complexities that have increased costs” for the 

Department of State.73 

Alongside these new field requirements, international affairs staff across the 

U.S. government developed different expectations about how DHS should 

manage and coordinate its activities abroad. Some believed that DHS should 

adopt a consolidated approach to managing activities at posts abroad. They 

believed that the Department of Defense Attaché System is the model for 

DHS to emulate, and said that DHS should select a single representative to 

manage all of the department’s activities in a given country. Advocates of this 

arrangement suggested that it would improve coordination for DHS by 

helping to ensure that component agencies were working in unison. They also 

72 Department of State Office of Inspector General, Impact of Department of Homeland Security Expansion Overseas on 

Chief of Mission Authorities. ISP-I-06-26, May 2006. p. 11. 73 Ibid., p. 7. 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

Page 50 
maintained that it would ease post management burdens by consolidating 

multiple DHS agencies under a single departmental representative. 

Other international affairs representatives across the government contended 

that a more limited DHS management role was appropriate. They pointed to 

the Department of Justice’s current field management structure abroad as a 

more appropriate model for DHS. Under the current Department of Justice 

arrangement, different components with staff abroad operate under separate 

chains of command in the field. They suggested that the broad base of DHS 

international activities was better suited to this approach. 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

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Figure 3: Defense Attaché and Department of Justice Models74 

Defense Attaché Model 

Ambassador 

Coast Guard 

Attaché 

Defense Attaché 

Naval 

Attaché 

Army 

Attaché 

Air Force 

Attaché 

Marine 

Attaché 

Department of Justice Attaché Model 

Ambassador 

DEA 

Attaché 

U.S. Marshals 

Attaché 

Criminal Division 

Attaché 

ATF 

Attaché 

Legal Attaché 

(FBI) 

Some DHS international field management challenges have since diminished. 

Although they had not been fully resolved at the time of our fieldwork, 

management challenges resulting from the reconfiguration of the INS and 

Customs Service had declined significantly from those reported in previous 

years. Following the creation of DHS, a large proportion of the difficulties 

U.S. missions reportedly experienced related to challenges in obtaining 

information about the admissibility of individuals and goods to the United 

States. The DHS component charged with making determinations of 

admissibility is CBP, which has since deployed scores of representatives to 

74 These graphics are intended to represent a composite view of possible DOD and DOJ representation at embassies 

abroad. Neither of the graphics is intended to reflect the actual reporting arrangement in any particular embassy. Only a 

limited number of embassies abroad have Coast Guard attachés, for example, and these attachés are not generally 

stationed alongside Marine and Naval attachés. Similarly, all DOJ agencies with staff abroad are not represented in any 

single mission. 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

Page 52 
international posts to address this information shortfall. As a result, DHS field 

requirements abroad are more modest than in the past, though some remain. 

We identified five ongoing international field requirements for DHS, each of 

which is more acute in some locations than others. The first of these is trip 

and meeting support. DHS officials travel to meet with foreign counterparts 

to share information and promote future exchanges. At times, visiting DHS 

officials represent a component that has no staff in the country he or she is 

visiting. The coordination of travel and meeting arrangements for this official 

may thus fall to the staff of another DHS component with representatives 

stationed in country, or to other U.S. embassy employees. 

Second, U.S. missions abroad require information about DHS structure and 

activities, and assistance linking to domestic DHS offices. Foreign 

governments, organizations, and businesses sometimes seek information about 

DHS from U.S. embassies and consulates. So too do individual citizens of the 

United States and other nations. U.S. missions attempt to address these 

information requests, and have their own needs for information about DHS 

programs and activities. Sometimes related questions or requests are of a 

technical or specialized nature that cannot be addressed by DHS staff at the 

mission. To fulfill their responsibility to the President to provide policy 

coordination overseas, senior embassy officials therefore often require 

assistance finding the appropriate domestic contact in DHS to respond to their 

needs. 

Third, interest in DHS and its missions abroad sometimes requires 

representational efforts. At times, foreign governments, businesses, and 

associations seek a DHS presence at receptions or to deliver speeches or 

presentations about aspects of the department’s operations that affect them. 

DHS benefits by participating in such activities because the department can 

use these opportunities to promote departmental priorities and develop closer 

relationships with host country counterparts and international stakeholders. 

Fourth, some DHS policy interests benefit by active representation and 

advocacy in international settings. New international programs and initiatives 

in particular, often require such policy support abroad. While some aspects of 

this engagement can be handled by component staff in country, some 

initiatives require a higher level of host government engagement than 

component staff can provide. In certain cases, DHS international policy 

initiatives stem from departmental units that do not have a representative in 

country. Furthermore, in some international settings, DHS policy interests 

could be better served with overseas staff assigned to identify new 

opportunities for DHS engagement with host governments, and alert DHS 

headquarters to issues of policy concern. 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

Page 53 
Finally, DHS programs and activities abroad require some limited operational 

cross-component coordination. This operational coordination requirement is 

extremely limited, however. For the most part, DHS component operations 

abroad are performed independently of one another to no ill effect. The Secret 

Service’s protective detail work abroad, for example, can proceed smoothly 

without any coordination with USCIS staff in country. But there are some 

exceptions. DHS components jointly participate in a few programs such as 

the Container Security Initiative, which includes staff from CBP and ICE, and 

the International Border Enforcement Team effort with Canada, which 

involves CBP, ICE, and the Coast Guard. The need for cross-component field 

coordination is the product of relations between of some DHS component 

operations. Because CBP and ICE both address customs issues, and because 

CBP, ICE, and USCIS all touch on different facets of immigration, from time 

to time international immigration and customs work draws in more than one 

DHS component. Finally, some limited operational coordination between 

DHS components is occasionally necessary because they sometimes work 

with the same foreign government counterparts. TSA and Coast Guard staff 

abroad sometimes share the same ministry of transportation contacts in the 

host government, for example. 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

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-

 

 

 

Table 2: DHS International Field Requirements 

DHS' International Field Management Requirements 

1 Trip and Meeting Support 

3⁄4 Coordinate travel and meeting arrangements for senior DHS officials and 

representatives of components with no staff in country. 

2 Information Needs 

3⁄4 Provide information about DHS structure and activities to U.S. missions abroad, 

foreign governments, organizations, businesses, and the public. 

3⁄4 Link U.S. missions abroad to appropriate domestic DHS offices. 

3 Representation 

3⁄4 Represent DHS at receptions, deliver speeches and presentations on the DHS 

operations that may affect foreign governments, businesses, and associations. 

3⁄4 Promote DHS priorities and develop relationships with host country counterparts 

and international stakeholders. 

4 Policy Interests 

3⁄4 Promote and advocate for DHS policy interests; particularly new international 

programs and initiatives. 

3⁄4 Engage high-level host government counterparts. 

3⁄4 Represent the international policy initiatives of DHS components that do not have 

staff in country. 

3⁄4 Identify new opportunities for DHS engagement with host governments, and alert 

DHS headquarters to issues of policy concern. 

5 Cross Component Coordination 

3⁄4 Perform limited operational cross-component coordination. 

In considering how DHS can best address its international field management 

requirements, it is important to consider the unique coordination and 

management structures that U.S. missions have. In some locations where 

there are major DHS policy thrusts and cross-component operational 

coordination requirements, these can be addressed through existing 

management systems in the embassy. Department of State political and 

economic section officers abroad often have policy portfolios that include 

areas of DHS focus, such as aviation and maritime security, and are 

responsible for addressing DHS policy interests abroad. Senior embassy 

officials meet daily with high-level counterparts in foreign governments and 

sometimes raise issues of interest to DHS. 

Embassies have built-in coordination and management procedures and 

processes that are not available domestically. These procedures and processes 

sometimes support DHS cross-component operational coordination. Chiefs of 

Mission abroad, in the person of either ambassadors or chargés d’affaires, 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

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represent the President of the United States and have authority over all U.S. 

civilian staff in country. The President’s letter of instruction to the Chief of 

Mission gives him full responsibility for the direction, coordination, and 

supervision of all U.S. government executive branch employees within the 

host country except those personnel under an area military commander or on 

the staff of an international organization. Chiefs of Mission can apply this 

authority to resolve coordination issues they observe. Embassies also 

typically host a number of forums for exchange and coordination, 

participation in many of which is mandatory for agencies represented at post. 

Ambassadors and deputy chiefs of mission generally bring together all the 

major units in the embassy for weekly country team meetings to discuss items 

of general interest. In addition to these meetings, embassies usually have 

regular working groups that draw together embassy staff working in a 

particular area. Most embassies have law enforcement working groups for 

U.S. law enforcement personnel at the mission. Some have counterterrorism 

working groups; others have working groups focused on border issues, money 

laundering, and visa fraud, as well. In addition, they have working groups and 

boards to assist in the management of shared services and housing. 

Current DHS Approaches to International Field Management 

DHS has pursued three approaches to address its international management 

requirements in the field. In most countries, DHS has relied on embassies to 

address its field management requirements. In a small subset of nations, DHS 

has appointed one of two types of representatives to provide field 

management support. 

Most U.S. missions operate with no formal on-site designee serving as a 

representative of the full range of DHS interests. Many of these missions 

have no DHS staff. Others have at least one employee from one of the 

department’s major constituent agencies. While that employee may be 

authorized to represent his or her agency’s interests within the mission, that 

individual has not been selected by DHS to represent departmental interests. 

Although DHS has not formally selected these employees to serve in this 

capacity, they are sometimes asked to do so by embassy managers such as the 

ambassador or deputy chief of mission. This was the case at two missions we 

visited, and we were told that DHS component staff had been asked to 

represent the department elsewhere, though they had not been authorized to do 

so by DHS headquarters. 

DHS has authorized 16 staff at different U.S. missions abroad to serve as 

representatives of the department. Some of these staff have been designated 

Senior Homeland Security Representatives (SHSR), while others are referred 

to as DHS attachés. 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

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Table 3: Foreign Posts with DHS Representatives75 

Foreign Posts with DHS Representatives 

SHSRs DHS Attachés 

Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates 

Bangkok, Thailand 

Beijing, China 

Frankfurt, Germany 

Manila, Philippines 

Moscow, Russia 

Panama City, Panama 

Paris, France 

Port au Prince, Haiti 

Rome, Italy 

Tokyo, Japan 

Singapore, Singapore 

Baghdad, Iraq 

Brussels, Belgium 

London, United Kingdom 

Ottawa, Canada 

OIA selects SHSRs from among individual component staff at a mission. 

SHSRs represent larger DHS interests as a collateral duty to their primary 

responsibility to represent and support their component agency. The SHSR 

title is conferred upon the individual selected for this role; it is not vested in 

the position the individual holds in the embassy. There are currently 12 

SHSRs. 

DHS attachés are to represent departmental, as opposed to component, 

interests as their primary responsibility. DHS attachés are usually full-time 

employees of OIA. There are currently three DHS attachés.76 

DHS Should Move Away from the SHSR Model Toward a More 

Distributed Approach 

DHS Senior Homeland Security Representatives were not provided clear 

guidance on their roles and responsibilities, and they interpreted their roles 

differently. Most endeavored to address a subset of the department’s 

international field management requirements. DHS, however, did not 

properly prepare SHSRs to conduct related activities. Furthermore, other 

DHS staff abroad perform similar functions for the department without any 

75 The DHS attaché in Brussels is the DHS representative to the U.S. Mission to the European Union, as well as the U.S. 

Mission to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. 

76 Technically, the “attaché” designation can be only conferred by the Department of State. It is, thus, possible that DHS 

could select and deploy a full-time employee to represent departmental interests in a given country, but not be permitted 

to refer to this individual as a DHS attaché. All of the currently deployed DHS attachés have been officially designated 

as attachés by the Department of State. The Coast Guard, ICE, and CBP all, likewise, have accredited attachés at U.S. 

embassies. Coast Guard attachés serve in the Defense Attaché System and support the Department of Defense.
 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

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formal designation as SHSRs, and like the SHSRs, they have not received the 

support they require to execute these functions with full effectiveness. 

A number of SHSRs said that they had not received sufficient guidance. In 

many cases, the only information they received on their roles and 

responsibilities came when they were notified that they had been designated 

SHSR. One SHSR said that he received only informal verbal notification of 

his designation as an SHSR, and no subsequent written guidance. Several 

other SHSRs we spoke with received a letter signed by the DHS Secretary 

designating them SHSR. With respect to their new role, these letters indicated 

that SHSRs were “to serve as the single focal point for both my Department 

and your Chief of Mission for homeland security matters.” SHSRs who 

received these letters observed that they provided very little information about 

what responsibilities SHSRs were to take on as a result of their designation, 

and said that they received little or no subsequent guidance on what the 

position entailed. Moreover, in many cases other DHS component managers 

at post who had not been selected as SHSRs received no notice that an SHSR 

had been designated, what the designation entailed, or what effect it would 

have on their operations. OIA staff recognized the limitations of this initial 

guidance, and sought to issue more detailed information on the roles and 

responsibilities of the SHSR, but were unable to secure DHS front office 

approval for their more expansive characterization of the SHSR role. 

With little formal guidance on their roles and responsibilities, SHSRs 

interpreted their position differently. The composition and volume of work 

associated with the SHSR mantle thus varied significantly from one post to 

another. Some SHSRs interpreted their mandate narrowly, while others 

understood it to encompass a broad range of activities. One SHSR said that 

he did not know what was expected of him apart from preparing for the 

Secretary’s visits, and did not otherwise engage in DHS activities outside of 

those on behalf of his component agency. In sharp contrast, another SHSR 

consulted with OIA on DHS policy questions, represented the department at 

speaking engagements, and hosted small receptions for foreign counterparts 

on behalf of DHS. Two SHSRs we met with abroad considered it their 

responsibility to provide travel and meeting planning assistance for our visits, 

while two others did not. 

Similarly, the time SHSRs devoted to this position differed from one post to 

the next. One former SHSR said that his associated responsibilities absorbed 

half of his time. Another said that his responsibilities grew to account for 

30% to 40% of his. Others reported that they did not do much as SHSRs, and 

devoted only a few hours to the position from time to time. 

Of the six current and past SHSRs with whom we met, most reported that they 

sought to address a subset of DHS international field management 

requirements in their capacities as SHSRs. All but one believed that it was 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

Page 58 
their duty to serve as the embassy’s primary point of contact for requests for 

information about DHS programs and activities, and a link to domestic DHS 

offices. Most perceived that it was their responsibility to provide travel and 

meeting planning support for DHS visitors whose component offices were not 

represented at the post. Most also interpreted the SHSR role to include some 

representational responsibilities on behalf of DHS. By contrast, none of the 

SHSRs understood their position to involve any management or coordination 

of the operations of any other DHS component in country. 

SHSRs noted, however, that they received little or no support from DHS to 

perform the duties they understood came with the position. Although their 

designation letters informed SHSRs that OIA staff would be “reaching out to 

them shortly” and were at their “full disposal,” most had little contact with 

OIA staff. Those who had contact with OIA said that most of this contact 

related to trip planning for DHS officials. 

SHSRs we spoke with were provided no training for the position and no 

related reference materials. One SHSR said that OIA had not provided other 

valuable information when needed, and had not done a good job of keeping 

him informed about major upcoming DHS policy announcements affecting his 

mission. When some SHSRs needed information about unfamiliar parts of 

DHS, they relied on personal contacts or their component chains of command, 

rather than OIA staff. 

Not only did SHSRs describe a dearth of information from DHS, they also 

said that DHS provided no additional resources to support their new 

responsibility. SHSRs received no funding to provide for SHSR-related costs, 

and no administrative support to assist them in executing their SHSR 

functions. 

OIA staff understood that SHSR duties amounted to an unfunded mandate to 

components from DHS, and requested funds to reimburse parent agencies for 

costs SHSRs incurred providing departmental support. Further, OIA 

recognized that SHSRs should receive training for the job, and requested 

funds for such training. OIA requests for funding for these efforts were not 

approved by the Assistant Secretary for Policy, and have not been included in 

congressional budget requests. 

Recognizing that an excessive concentration of SHSR designations on the 

staff of few components could adversely affect those components’ operations 

abroad, OIA sought to balance the SHSR designation across the DHS 

components. Staff in OIA reasoned that one or two components should not be 

asked to bear this collateral duty in all locations; that the responsibility for 

supporting departmental interests should be shared by all components with 

staff abroad. At the time of our fieldwork, however, three-quarters of SHSR 

designations had been given to ICE or USCIS. The Coast Guard had two 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

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SHSRs, while CBP had one. This was, in part, because OIA needed 

components’ approval before designating any of their staff an SHSR. None of 

the SHSRs came from the Secret Service, according to OIA, because the 

Secret Service resisted the designation of any of its international staff as 

SHSRs. 

Because the SHSR designation is not transferable, the OIA SHSR balancing 

act and associated negotiations with components are often repeated. Every 

time a designated SHSR leaves a post, OIA considers whether there is an 

appropriate successor at the post or on the way, and then seeks the approval of 

the prospective successor’s agency before designating him or her SHSR. 

The consideration that OIA devotes to SHSR designation is largely wasted 

because the designation does not have a major effect on DHS activities 

abroad. The kind of work that SHSRs perform for the department is also 

handled by DHS staff who have not been designated SHSRs. There are 

several reasons for this. 

First, other DHS staff at missions where an SHSR has been designated 

sometimes perform functions typically handled by the SHSR, because SHSRs 

have prior commitments or responsibilities they regard as more important. 

Some SHSRs spoke of difficulties juggling DHS responsibilities with their 

component workloads. One SHSR who spoke of challenges balancing SHSR 

responsibilities with component obligations, said that he tended to emphasize 

component activities because he was paid by the component and component 

managers evaluated his performance. Sometimes the regional responsibilities 

of DHS component representatives chosen to be SHSRs reportedly interfered 

with their ability to devote more continuous attention to this role.77 Indeed, 

senior ICE, USCIS, CBP, TSA, Secret Service, and Coast Guard staff abroad 

frequently have regional responsibilities that require them to travel 

extensively, sometimes to up to a dozen neighboring countries in the region. 

SHSRs we spoke with sometimes pointed to these travels as the justification 

for handing off what might otherwise be considered SHSR responsibilities to 

other embassy staff. 

Second, while many embassy managers appreciate having a DHS employee 

on staff to whom they can address inquiries about DHS, they do not always 

follow the DHS lead in identifying someone to serve in this capacity. In 

practice, ambassadors and deputy chiefs of mission determined who was to fill 

this role regardless of whom DHS designated for the job. As noted earlier, 

embassy managers identified DHS employees to serve in this capacity at 

missions where DHS had not designated anyone as the department’s 

representative. Moreover, at two posts we visited with designated SHSRs, 

77 Department of State Office of Inspector General, Impact of Department of Homeland Security Expansion Overseas on 

Chief of Mission Authorities. ISP-I-06-26, May 2006. p. 10. 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

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embassy managers did not exclusively seek them out to address noncomponent specific DHS issues. 

Third, DHS sometimes requires travel and representational support in 

countries where it has not designated an SHSR. Sometimes the work that 

DHS component representatives at these posts perform on behalf of the 

department eclipses that of some SHSRs. The ICE Attaché in Bern, 

Switzerland, for example, provided substantial assistance to OIA in 

coordinating the DHS Secretary’s participation in the 2006 World Economic 

Forum, expending half of his office’s annual operating budget on travel in the 

process. 

Finally, DHS component international staff do not distinguish between SHSRs 

and other embassy staff in seeking support at missions where they have no 

permanent representation. For one, each of the six DHS components with a 

significant international footprint provides global coverage of its international 

operations by dividing responsibilities for different parts of the world among 

staff abroad. Thus, the ICE Attaché in Singapore provides coverage for a host 

of other nations in the region, including Australia and Indonesia, and the 

Secret Service office in Paris provides investigative and protective support for 

most of Africa. 

When they absolutely need in-country support, staff from these components 

do not make a point of involving the SHSR; instead, they reach out to the 

embassy office that deals most closely with their area of interest. For 

example, Coast Guard port security liaisons we spoke with generally 

contacted embassy economics section officers or defense attaché offices for 

assistance rather than anyone from DHS. Secret Service and ICE staff abroad 

voiced a preference for dealing with law enforcement counterparts such as 

embassy Regional Security Officers and FBI Legal Attachés; and USCIS 

representatives tended to work through embassy consular sections. 

We believe that the return on the SHSR model is too small to justify the 

attention required to maintain it. The designation of SHSRs by DHS appeared 

to be the source of more confusion than meaningful field management 

assistance. Due to deficiencies in the administration of the SHSR effort, and 

the tendency for DHS and Department of State personnel to bypass the SHSR, 

the SHSR program should be abandoned in favor of a more distributed 

approach that relies on all component senior staff at post. Because other DHS 

staff abroad performed functions similar to SHSRs, DHS should focus on 

providing this larger complement of employees with the training and 

resources necessary to address the basic DHS field management functions that 

most SHSRs perform. 

To ensure that senior component representatives abroad can properly support 

the department’s basic field management requirements, DHS should develop 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

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and administer predeployment training to this end. OIA has made initial 

strides in this area by coordinating the development of a “DHS 101” 

international training module that USCIS delivered to staff preparing for 

deployment abroad. OIA should build on this training effort by providing the 

training to the senior representatives of other components before they are 

deployed abroad, and ensuring that the curriculum prepares them properly for 

the functions they may be asked to perform on the department’s behalf. 

In addition, DHS should develop a system for assigning component staff 

abroad the responsibility for department-level tasks that require attention in 

the field, such as coordinating meeting arrangements for visiting DHS 

officials. This system should track component staff time commitments to 

these tasks, so that headquarters-based component managers can assess the 

extent to which their staff abroad are engaged in activities on behalf of the 

department. In addition, DHS should budget for costs associated with these 

field activities, and reimburse component field staff for justifiable costs they 

incur on behalf of the department. 

We recommend that the Assistant Secretary for International Affairs: 

Recommendation #9: Coordinate with component international affairs 

managers to provide all senior component representatives abroad training and 

information to prepare them to provide trip support to visiting DHS staff, 

serve as a DHS information resource for the embassy, and perform basic 

representational functions on behalf of the department. 

Recommendation #10: Develop a process for assigning component staff 

abroad responsibility for department-level tasks that require attention in the 

field, and monitor component staff time commitments to these tasks and other 

DHS-level obligations assigned by embassy managers. 

Recommendation #11: Budget for the cost of field activities conducted by 

component staff on the department’s behalf, and reimburse component field 

staff for justifiable costs incurred in the conduct of requested activities. 

DHS Should More Clearly Define DHS Attaché Roles and 

Responsibilities Prior to Deployment 

DHS plans for deploying DHS attachés abroad are more ambitious than its 

SHSR-related efforts. Unlike SHSRs, DHS attachés are expected to address 

the full scope of DHS international field management requirements in the 

country to which they have been deployed. With one exception, they attend to 

these responsibilities full-time and report directly to OIA. 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

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There are currently four DHS attachés. One DHS attaché is deployed to 

Baghdad, Iraq. Another works out of London, where he also serves as the 

TSA Representative, and performs both DHS attaché and TSA duties. The 

third DHS attaché arrived in Brussels in March 2007 and serves both the U.S. 

mission to the European Union, and to the North Atlantic Treaty 

Organization. In early 2008, a fourth DHS attaché deployed to Ottawa. 

OIA plans to increase its complement of DHS attachés. Another DHS attaché 

is scheduled to deploy to Mexico City later in 2008. This attaché is to be 

followed by one in Singapore later in 2009. OIA plans for all future attachés 

to serve the office on a full-time basis. 

DHS attachés are the DHS Secretary’s personal representative to the 

American embassy, and are to act as the embassy’s principal DHS point of 

contact for the ambassador and deputy chief of mission. Their primary 

mission is to promote DHS goals and objectives through dialogue with foreign 

counterparts and identify DHS priorities for the use of DHS resources. They 

are also expected to assist and accompany DHS senior-level officials on visits, 

and are responsible for coordinating all DHS activities and personnel in their 

assigned country. 

International affairs staff from DHS and other departments expressed concern 

about two aspects of this mandate: DHS attachés’ policy role, and the means 

through which they are to coordinate DHS component activities at the 

mission. 

Several officials we spoke with abroad expressed difficulty imagining a 

productive policy role for a DHS attaché at their posts. While some 

international affairs staff could envision a positive policy coordination role for 

DHS attachés, many did not think that DHS had identified goals and 

objectives that component staff already in country did not or could not 

address. 

International affairs staff in DHS and other departments expressed 

reservations about bringing aboard a DHS attaché to address as yet undefined 

policy objectives, in part because they anticipated that the addition of a DHS 

attaché would have the effect of reducing DHS component staffing at some 

missions. Several international affairs representatives reported that both DHS 

and the U.S. mission would lose out if a policy-oriented attaché were 

substituted for a working-level subject matter expert. Efforts to “rightsize” 

the U.S. government’s overseas footprint, combined with space and security 

restrictions, have put pressure on the number of U.S. government employees 

overseas. As a result, the addition of a DHS attaché at some embassies might 

indeed mean the loss of a component billet there. Some international affairs 

staff questioned whether either DHS or the embassy would be well served by 

the addition of a policy generalist, if this generalist replaced an employee with 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

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specialized expertise in a key DHS international mission area. This was a 

view shared by one deputy chief of mission who said that his mission would 

use its National Security Decision Directive-38 authority to resist the 

deployment of a DHS attaché for this reason. 

To address doubts about the need for DHS-level policy engagement in a given 

location, DHS should ensure that each DHS attaché has a clear policy agenda 

from which to operate before he or she is deployed. These policy agendas 

should reflect DHS aims and priorities in the country or region for which the 

attaché is to be responsible. DHS will be able to use such policy agendas to 

support its attaché deployment decisions, and ultimately assess the 

successfulness of the deployment. 

We recommend that the Assistant Secretary for International Affairs: 

Recommendation #12: Establish clear policy aims and priorities in the 

theater to which all DHS attachés are to be deployed prior to their 

deployment. These policy aims and priorities may be articulated in regional 

or national engagement plans and should include cross-component policy 

efforts or policy engagements that cannot be otherwise addressed by DHS 

component representatives currently in the theater. 

The second area of concern for international affairs staff relates to uncertainty 

about how DHS attachés are to carry out their coordination responsibilities. 

Indeed, discussion of this point of responsibility for DHS attachés caused 

consternation among many DHS component staff abroad. A number of DHS 

staff said that, in this regard, the presence of a DHS attaché would simply 

create another layer of bureaucracy. Many international affairs staff 

questioned the need for a DHS attaché to provide such coordination, at all. 

Component staff abroad already report to a manager in-country, the chief of 

mission, and also report through chains of command to superiors in their 

component headquarters in Washington, DC. 

To many DHS staff abroad, the addition of a DHS attaché came with more 

risks than potential benefits in the area of operational coordination. Several 

said that the operational oversight of all component operations at a large 

mission would be counterproductive because there was simply too much 

information and activity for one person to manage. Some DHS staff 

expressed concern that an operationally engaged DHS attaché would diminish 

the standing of the component leaders in the embassy and with foreign 

counterparts. 

Moreover, component staff were concerned that if a DHS attaché became 

involved in operational matters, the attaché would eventually come to replace 

them at country team meetings, in law enforcement working groups, and in 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

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other instances in which they interact with the ambassador or deputy chief of 

mission. They maintained that a DHS attaché could not represent their 

interests in these settings as effectively as they did, and perceived that they 

would lose access to valuable information shared in these meetings. 

These concerns have proliferated, in part, because DHS has provided little 

guidance on the matter. Additionally, some of the information available from 

DHS appears to have inconsistencies. The position description for the Mexico 

City-based DHS attaché indicates that he will supervise the DHS component 

staff at post. There is no formal process for that attaché to supervise those 

staff, however, as all other DHS staff in Mexico City report to their 

component managers, rather than the attaché. 

DHS attachés could maintain situational awareness to facilitate coordination 

through visibility into communications between components and the host 

government. Indeed, according to the designation letter for the DHS attaché 

in Baghdad, “all communications regarding DHS issues, whether into or out 

of Iraq, are to be coordinated through” him. While his designation letter 

indicates that this requirement will help DHS “speak with one clear, 

consistent, and coordinated voice,” DHS staff in Brussels and London are not 

mandated to do the same. DHS attachés in those locations do not have an 

opportunity to review or clear all component communications with foreign 

counterparts. 

By not providing more clarity about how DHS attachés are to coordinate DHS 

staff and activities, DHS has contributed to anxiety among staff in the field. 

Component staff are concerned that the deployment of a DHS attaché to their 

mission will needlessly add to their reporting obligations. To address these 

concerns, DHS should clearly set forth how it intends DHS attachés to 

coordinate the activities of component staff, and what authorities are 

associated with this role. Establishing a direct reporting relationship between 

component staff and the DHS attaché may place an excessive burden on staff 

who are already responsible to their component managers and the chief of 

mission. Other measures to ensure that DHS attachés have the operational 

visibility they need to determine whether coordination is needed, however, 

may be appropriate. DHS should consider adopting a requirement that 

component staff share regular reports to their Washington-based managers 

with the DHS attaché, and provide the attaché with advance review of formal 

correspondence with foreign governments. 

We recommend that the Assistant Secretary for International Affairs: 

Recommendation #13: Develop clear guidelines on how DHS attachés are 

expected to coordinate DHS staff and activities, and communicate these 

expectations to embassies and affected component staff. 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

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DHS Can Address the Specialized Needs of its International Staff and 

Their Families More Effectively 

DHS employees who are assigned to foreign countries live and work in 

environments profoundly different from those they encounter domestically. 

Along with their families, these staff face challenges unique to a foreign 

environment and, as such, have distinctive needs. DHS has not addressed 

these specialized needs uniformly or effectively in all cases. 

Other federal agencies that operate abroad have a corps of personnel dedicated 

to international work, many of whom are generalists. In order to meet the 

needs of these personnel, several foreign affairs agencies offer staff rigorous 

training before they are deployed overseas, and have administrative support 

structures dedicated to managing all phases of a multiyear international 

assignment. They also have redeployment systems in place that leverage their 

employees’ specialized skills and experience, and provide for satisfactory 

rotation arrangements and procedures for personnel who commit to a career in 

the field. 

DHS employees abroad, on the other hand, tend to be subject matter experts 

and functional specialists, most without prior experience abroad, many of 

whom are unlikely to ever have a second overseas assignment. DHS 

employees receive varying levels of training in preparation for their 

international assignments, depending on the component or program they 

represent. Once abroad, they sometimes perceive shortcomings in the support 

they and their family members receive. They often return to domestic 

positions similar to those they filled before their foreign assignment. For 

many it is a struggle to obtain a satisfactory domestic assignment to which to 

return. 

Several international staff we met within DHS and other departments 

suggested that the formation of a DHS foreign service would most effectively 

address the difficulties DHS staff abroad face. Many other DHS staff opposed 

the idea of creating a DHS foreign service, asserting that the department was 

ill-suited to a foreign service arrangement. 

The federal government currently has four foreign services – the Department 

of State, the U.S. Agency for International Development, the Foreign 

Commercial Service (in the Department of Commerce), and the Foreign 

Agricultural Service (in the U.S. Department of Agriculture). Members of 

these foreign service organizations are governed by different personnel and 

administrative rules than their civil service counterparts. Foreign service 

employees are, for example, obliged to serve abroad for substantial portions of 

the careers, and must meet foreign language proficiency requirements to fill 

many positions. Further, unlike civil service employees who can remain at the 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

Page 66 
same rank indefinitely, foreign service employees must be promoted to retain 

their appointments. Foreign service personnel generally rotate among 

positions that are excepted from competitive service, and reserved for 

members of the foreign service. They are generally restricted from serving 

more than eight consecutive years in domestic assignments, or more than 15 

years in a row abroad. These and other requirements prompt foreign service 

staff to shift between assignments frequently and develop general, broadly 

applicable analytical, reporting, intercultural, and linguistic skills in place of 

more specialized expertise. 

Advocates for a DHS foreign service suggest that by forming a service, the 

department could improve its international posture. They contend that a 

foreign service corps would be better prepared for and more suited to 

international work than our current international workforce. Proponents of the 

concept added that international staff in a foreign service would have a more 

natural job rotation process, and would find with less effort relevant follow-on 

assignments back in the United States. Finally, proponents maintained that a 

foreign service system would necessitate designating certain specific domestic 

billets to be filled by returning staff and that these officers, enriched by their 

international experience, would better equip their components for 

international activities. 

While DHS has room to improve on the international front, there are two 

primary reasons why the formation of a DHS foreign service is not the best 

way to bring about needed improvements at this time. First, the DHS 

international footprint is not sufficiently homogeneous to support a viable 

foreign service. DHS staff abroad are drawn from 11 components. Most are 

functional experts who perform specialized work in support of their respective 

U.S. missions. These functional specialists cannot be substituted for one 

another: a USCIS adjudicator cannot serve as an ICE criminal investigator or 

as Coast Guard officer, no matter how much international experience he or 

she obtains. And a DHS foreign service generalist could not be expected to 

perform the array of functions the department’s current complement of 

international staff perform. Second, shortcomings that exist in the 

department’s international configuration can be addressed by more succinct 

and economical means than creating a parallel personnel system. DHS can 

improve international staff conditions by: 

• Enhancing staff predeployment preparedness, 

• Improving specialized support provided to staff, 

• Leveraging international staff knowledge and experience, and 

• Identifying basic return rights principles for international staff. 

While a foreign service is not currently viable DHS-wide, the formation of a 

foreign service may be an option for some departmental components with a 

substantial international footprint. While it is unreasonable to rely on a 

foreign service generalist to perform the full range of DHS functions abroad, 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

Page 67 
it may not be unreasonable to expect a foreign service generalist to develop 

expertise in the more limited array of issues associated with the international 

work of a single DHS component. We did not examine whether creating a 

component-specific foreign service is advisable. 

Some reviewers of our draft report suggested that we should have considered 

whether DHS should seek a legislative change to grant it foreign affairs 

agency status. They noted that if DHS were to secure foreign affairs agency 

status, the department would be able to change the terms of service for staff 

abroad and compensation for its foreign service personnel, and have greater 

latitude in transferring funding overseas. While we did not specifically 

consider the question of whether DHS should seek foreign affairs agency 

status, we believe that many of the same conditions that weigh against the 

adoption of a foreign service model at the DHS level apply to the pursuit of 

foreign affairs agency status, as well. Perhaps the most significant of these 

conditions is that fact that DHS international staff are not consolidated within 

a single unit in the department that could be readily designated a foreign 

affairs agency. 

DHS International Staff Predeployment Preparedness Could Be 

Improved 

For employees to serve their organizations effectively, they must command 

the knowledge and skills required for their respective positions. The 

knowledge and skill requirements for international positions are distinct from 

those for many domestic positions. Consequently, domestic staff assigned to 

international positions often face knowledge and skill deficits. These deficits 

can be addressed through predeployment training. 

International staff often bring family members with them during their 

assignments abroad. Family members sometimes face challenges adjusting to 

living in an overseas environment. For the stay-at-home dependent parent, the 

simplest daily chores, shopping, planning a child’s after school activities or 

calling a plumber, can be daunting in a strange country, especially when the 

parent cannot read street signs or communicate in the local language. The 

difficulties family members confront abroad could adversely affect employee 

performance. Thus, predeployment education for family members could 

contribute to organizational performance in international settings. 

A number of DHS staff abroad reported that neither they nor their family 

members had been properly prepared for international assignments. While 

some staff said that they had received adequate training for their positions, 

others described preparedness deficits, for them and their families, in the 

following areas: 

• Language training, 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

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• Diplomatic skills and cross-cultural awareness, 

• Country and area studies, and 

• Working in an embassy. 

Language Training 

DHS staff serving in non-English speaking countries generally receive little or 

no foreign language instruction prior to deployment. We encountered 

language deficits among DHS staff in four of the five countries we visited 

where English was not the official language. These language deficits had 

adverse effects on both their professional and personal lives. 

Most DHS staff in these countries said that their limited language 

comprehension did not prevent them from performing basic duties. However, 

several DHS staff told us that a greater familiarity with the local language 

would have helped them perform their jobs more effectively. Some perceived 

that they were at a relative disadvantage to other embassy units in their ability 

to build relationships with counterparts in the host government due to their 

lesser command of the language. Others observed that their language 

limitations made them more dependent on locally engaged staff to play vital 

roles in the office. 

Many DHS personnel deployed to countries where English is not the primary 

language reported that their limited foreign language skills diminished their 

ability to operate and function in their private lives. One DHS employee 

could not get home without the assistance of a local employee to direct his cab 

driver to his house. Some reported that family members’ inability to speak the 

local language caused them difficulties, and sometimes led to feelings of 

isolation. In some cases, this reportedly made for a stressful home life for 

DHS employees. 

Diplomatic Skills and Cross Cultural Awareness 

Some DHS staff reportedly did not know how to effectively interact with 

colleagues at the embassy or with host country counterparts. While senior 

staff who have prior experience working abroad generally possessed the 

necessary diplomatic skills to operate in a foreign environment, other staff did 

not. Several Department of State officials expressed reservations about the 

performance of some DHS staff in this regard. Indeed, a number of DHS staff 

reported that predeployment training on diplomacy and cross-cultural 

awareness would have been helpful. 

Country and Area Studies 

Most DHS staff we met who interact with foreign counterparts had not 

received country and area studies prior to their deployments. Most reported 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

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that the bulk of the country- and region-specific information they received 

was acquired on the job after arrival. According to other staff in embassies 

abroad, however, some DHS staff were unfamiliar with the structure and 

composition of foreign counterpart agencies in their areas of responsibility 

sometime after deployment. Several staff said that this information would 

have been helpful to them had they received it earlier. 

Working in an Embassy 

DHS staff are not sufficiently knowledgeable about how to operate within an 

embassy environment. Most DHS staff had taken a Department of State 

“Working in an Embassy” training course before they were deployed, but 

many said that more training on the embassy environment and key embassy 

units would have been helpful. Some Department of State representatives 

reported that DHS staff could be better prepared to understand the roles and 

responsibilities of the various Department of State units and federal agencies 

in order to function more effectively in an embassy environment. 

Staff preparedness for international assignments varies widely across DHS. 

While some DHS programs dedicate significant consideration, time, and 

resources to preparing staff for overseas deployments, others do not. DHS 

components with a more substantial staff presence abroad, such as CBP, ICE, 

and USCIS, prepare their personnel more extensively for an overseas 

assignment than components with less staff abroad, such as TSA and FEMA. 

Although there is standard Department of State training that all civilian 

employees must attend prior to a permanent deployment abroad, some DHS 

staff, as well as their spouses, receive additional training to prepare them for 

living and working abroad. Coast Guard attachés, who are detailed to the 

Defense Attaché System, for example, receive extensive language, diplomacy, 

cross-cultural awareness, and country and area studies training before they 

arrive at post. Some units in CBP, ICE, and USCIS have international 

orientation programs that provide information about component overseas 

operations, embassy office duties and responsibilities, and international 

features of human resource and budgeting matters. These offices encourage 

spouses to attend predeployment training to prepare them for the overseas 

environment. 

Conversely, other DHS offices provide very limited instruction to employees 

bound for international assignments. Many FEMA and TSA international 

staff, for example, do not receive much overseas orientation training. 

Variations in predeployment training also exist within components. While 

CBP attachés undergo a several-week orientation program to prepare them for 

living and operating abroad, CBP preclearance staff receive little or no 

international preparedness training. 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

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DHS has recently taken steps to improve predeployment preparedness. A few 

DHS units revised and expanded their international orientation training 

curricula to address some training deficits. OIA, in turn, assembled 

component international affairs representatives to determine what items 

should be included in a “DHS 101” international orientation course. The 

resulting course familiarizes staff with the embassy setting, provides an 

overview of DHS international operations and activities, and clarifies DHS 

employees’ place within the embassy. It helps prepare DHS staff to respond 

usefully to taskings or requests related to other DHS components by providing 

them with more detailed information in this area. The course was piloted by 

USCIS, and OIA hopes it will be adopted by other component offices. Course 

development efforts such as this are positive steps, but more can be done. 

No one single training program will address the preparedness needs of all 

DHS international staff and their families. DHS staff abroad simply have too 

many different missions and functions. Current shortcomings in international 

staff preparedness are best addressed through the development of DHS-wide 

minimum predeployment training criteria. Such training criteria should 

specify that staff who perform a given function abroad receive training to 

prepare them to perform that function. The criteria could indicate, for 

example, that DHS staff who frequently interface with senior officials in host 

governments receive instruction on that nation’s political system and 

diplomatic skills training. In developing these criteria, DHS can use the 

strengths of some component international orientation programs to improve 

the predeployment training programs of other offices in the department. By 

developing such standards and monitoring compliance with them, DHS can 

ensure that international staff and their families receive the training they need 

to operate effectively abroad. 

We recommend that the Assistant Secretary for International Affairs: 

Recommendation #14: Develop, in collaboration with the Chief Human 

Capital Officer and DHS component international affairs offices, 

predeployment preparedness criteria for staff and their families abroad, and 

require component reporting on how they meet those preparedness standards 

for each international program and position type. 

DHS Staff Abroad Do Not Always Receive the Specialized Support 

They Need 

Staff and their families who are overseas on a permanent assignment have 

distinct administrative needs that require specialized support. These needs 

range from assisting staff with housing, to securing office space and providing 

information technology support at their overseas locations, whether at a 

Department of State compound or off-site. International staff and their 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

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families also need basic information on medical benefits, healthcare, and 

schooling. 

Some DHS staff reported housing difficulties. Several DHS employees 

abroad said that there were significant delays in obtaining permanent housing 

after they arrived at their international posts. Many were in temporary 

housing or hotels for several months before permanent living quarters were 

approved by embassy security officers and assigned to them. Other DHS 

employees abroad perceived that they were placed in housing inferior to that 

of their Department of State colleagues. While DHS components contribute 

the same amount of money per employee to embassy housing services as other 

agencies, in one location DHS staff were told that the employees of foreign 

affairs agencies were given priority in selecting available government-owned 

or long-term leased housing. 

DHS staff abroad reported difficulties with healthcare and schooling, as well. 

For example, some staff did not clearly understand their medical benefits, 

while others had difficulty with insurance coverage and reimbursements. In 

one case, a DHS employee waited more than a year to receive payment for 

costly local medical care he paid out of pocket. Other DHS employees 

overseas said they had difficulty identifying appropriate schools, enrolling 

their children in their school of choice, and obtaining tuition assistance. 

Other staff raised grievances about workspace. Allocating space in an 

embassy is a difficult task for an embassy’s management personnel due to a 

number of factors, including structural space constraints and associated 

construction costs. These difficulties should not preclude management 

personnel from ensuring the most effective use of workspace. However, in 

more than one location, embassy management counselors were unable to 

apportion workspace to the satisfaction of incoming DHS components, and 

placed this obligation on DHS component offices to decide among 

themselves. Rather than making determinations where to place DHS staff 

from a new component based on an assessment of all workspace in the 

embassy, these management counselors insisted that the space for new DHS 

staff come out of the space other DHS staff already occupied. Because the 

management counselor did not intervene to guarantee an equitable solution in 

one embassy, the result is that DHS staff from one component have 

considerably more workspace per person than staff from another DHS 

component. 

Because the majority of DHS staff abroad work at remote locations away from 

an embassy or consulate, some have difficulty accessing embassy services for 

which their organizations have paid. Some off-site DHS personnel said that 

they had received little support during their transition to post, and did not 

receive much, if any, assistance from embassy staff in identifying appropriate 

workspace and housing in these locations. Several observed that their 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

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distance from an embassy or consulate reduced their ability to access other 

embassy services such as financial and travel support. This was particularly 

the case for CBP employees abroad, many of whom operate out of airports 

and seaports. 

Another challenge DHS staff abroad noted was the almost total absence of 

representational funds at their disposal. In international settings, the use of 

representational funds to host lunch or dinner meetings is vital in building 

relationships with host country counterparts. Contacts developed through the 

use of representational funds often provide valuable information or assistance 

to DHS staff abroad. To develop those contacts, many DHS staff pay out of 

their own pockets for meals for host government contacts and to sponsor 

work-related events. Several purchase mementos with their agency logo, such 

as key rings, pens, and mugs, so they can promote awareness of their 

organization. While staff in a few DHS programs had access to funds for this 

purpose, a number of DHS staff abroad reported spending a significant 

amount of their own money on these expenses; sometimes in excess of a 

thousand dollars a year. 

Some difficulties DHS staff face arise from their limited familiarity with 

Department of State-managed support services, and how to access and 

influence them. 

Many support services for DHS employees abroad, including mail and 

messenger services, security, information and personnel management, and 

travel and accounting, are paid for by DHS components. These services are 

provided under the International Cooperative Administrative Support Services 

(ICASS) umbrella managed by Department of State officials at embassies. 

ICASS is a system that consolidates support services for U.S. civilian 

personnel in country by distributing service costs across all participating U.S. 

agencies. The system has built-in processes for responding to staff input. For 

example, embassy employees can shape services by participating in local 

ICASS Councils. Meanwhile, embassy employees can raise housing-related 

issues at local housing boards. U.S. government staff abroad who are 

knowledgeable about these forums have an outlet to address concerns about 

unsatisfactory service. 

While some DHS program offices familiarize their employees with ICASS 

support services before they are deployed, several others do not. A number of 

DHS staff abroad said that more information on ICASS would have been 

helpful because they were not confident that they fully understood what 

embassy services were available to them, or how to access them. Some even 

resisted embassy service support that their headquarters offices paid for 

because they were unaware that the services were already paid for. 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

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DHS staff and their families would be better prepared for life abroad if they 

had more information about ICASS services and other Department of State 

resources available to them. Increased familiarity with the system would also 

enable DHS staff to make more informed assessments about whether they are 

receiving the full menu of services for which their organizations have paid. 

Finally, if DHS staff abroad had greater familiarity with forums for providing 

input into the provision of these services, they would be able to address 

service grievances more effectively. DHS components with staff on 

permanent assignment overseas should better prepare them to understand 

related aspects of Department of State and embassy operations and practices. 

We recommend that the Commissioner of Customs and Border Protection, the 

Assistant Secretary of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the 

Commandant of the Coast Guard, the Director of the Secret Service, the 

Director for U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, the Assistant 

Secretary for Transportation Security Administration, the Administrator for 

the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the Under Secretary for Science 

and Technology, the Director of the Federal Law Enforcement Training 

Center, the Assistant Secretary for International Affairs, and the Director of 

US-VISIT: 

Recommendation #15: Provide international staff with more information 

and training on Department of State administrative support services available 

to them abroad, and the forums and processes available to them for addressing 

concerns about the adequacy of those services. 

Other challenges are associated with the quality of support provided to staff 

by their DHS program offices in the United States. Some DHS program 

offices with a significant international presence have structures in place to 

effectively support their international staff, while others do not. The ICE 

Office of International Affairs, for example, has its own finance, procurement, 

and human resources units, while TSA and FEMA rely on units that primarily 

support domestic staff to provide these services. According to some 

international staff, these primarily domestic-oriented support units provide 

inferior support because they are not as familiar with the special requirements 

and unique challenges of working in the international setting. 

Some disparities in the quality of support DHS staff receive abroad result 

from administrative policy differences across DHS organizations. DHS 

program administrative policies differ from one another in areas such as 

permitted travel allowances, and danger and hazardous duty pay incentives. 

ICE, TSA, and Secret Service international staff, for example, receive 

educational allowances for their children, while some Coast Guard employees 

abroad do not. Whereas CBP does not permit promotions for staff while they 

are abroad, individual Secret Service posts set promotional practices. 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

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To help address variations in the quality of support services provided to DHS 

staff abroad, OIA stimulated the formation of a DHS Interagency 

Administrative Steering Council. This group promotes the sharing of best 

practices on administrative support services among component offices. This 

is a positive step, but more can be done. DHS staff, for example, could 

benefit from a resource that provides basic information on life overseas 

alongside specific information on DHS systems and requirements, and contact 

information for other DHS offices abroad. 

Along with these efforts, DHS should establish baseline expectations about 

the support services DHS staff are to receive when they are abroad. The 

establishment of such minimum support requirements would ensure that basic 

services are available to all DHS staff posted abroad. 

We recommend that the Assistant Secretary for International Affairs: 

Recommendation #16: Establish, in collaboration with the Under Secretary 

for Management, minimum support requirements for staff abroad to ensure 

that they have the proper resources and receive adequate and timely support 

prior to and during their tours of duty. 

DHS Should Do More to Leverage Knowledge and Expertise Acquired by 

Staff Abroad 

Effective organizations recoup their human capital investments. DHS 

investment in its international staff is substantial, but we believe that the 

department does not capitalize to the extent it should on its investment in 

these staff. 

DHS staff abroad develop specialized knowledge and expertise during their 

time overseas. They acquire knowledge about other countries’ political and 

legal institutions, as well as applicable international laws and regulations. 

They also develop important relationships with foreign counterparts: 

relationships that aid in obtaining valuable information in support of U.S. 

interests. 

The development of these personnel assets, however, comes at a considerable 

cost to DHS. With nearly 2,000 positions in 79 countries, DHS devotes 

significant resources to staff overseas. According to a GAO report, the 

average cost for an overseas position in 2007 was $491,000.78 Some DHS 

78 GAO, Overseas Staffing: Rightsizing Approaches Slowly Taking Hold but More Action Needed to Coordinate and 

Carry Out Efforts, GAO-06-737, p. 5. 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

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component offices also spend a substantial amount on predeployment training 

while staff are abroad. 

DHS does not obtain a long-term return on many of these human capital 

investments. A number of DHS employees leave the federal government 

following their international assignments, and many retire, all together. 

Component international affairs representatives said that such retirements 

were commonplace, as many overseas staff in their organizations were 

nearing the end of their careers. A few DHS international affairs staff 

reported that assignments abroad were sometimes seen as a career capstone 

and a final way for agencies to thank long-time employees for their service. 

DHS does not recover its human capital investment in staff with expertise in 

foreign affairs when these employees are returned to positions where they 

cannot apply this expertise. While some DHS staff abroad expressed 

confidence that they would be able to use fully the knowledge and skills they 

developed abroad after their international tours ended, most did not. A few 

employees said that their international experience would contribute 

significantly to their ability to perform in the positions to which they expected 

to return. Most others said that they would be able to apply only a modest 

subset of the knowledge and skills they had developed abroad. Several staff 

suggested, for example, that they would be able to use the diplomacy skills 

they had honed abroad in working with external stakeholders in their future 

domestic positions. Few staff could explain how they would use cultural and 

linguistic skills, their contacts or familiarity with foreign affairs operations, or 

knowledge of the host country’s political and legal systems in their next job. 

This is in large measure because only a fraction of DHS personnel abroad 

expected to continue to work in the international arena for DHS. 

To a large extent, DHS component offices with international staff did not have 

a process to capitalize on their expertise after their international tours ended. 

Several component international affairs managers could not articulate how 

their organizations would effectively use international staff upon return to the 

United States. While some international affairs managers said that they would 

try to absorb returning staff into their international program offices, they 

acknowledged that their offices were too small to take on many employees 

returning from assignments abroad. Some components had requirements that 

effectively capped the amount of time employees could perform international 

work. One component, for example, limits the amount of time its employees 

can work abroad. Others prevent employees from serving more than one tour 

of duty overseas in their careers. 

The absence of a systematic approach for retaining international expertise 

contributed to the view among some staff that headquarters offices would 

make no effort to leverage their expertise. Equipped with skills and expertise 

only obtainable through international work experience, but unable to employ 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

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them within their organizations, some DHS employees look elsewhere. One 

DHS employee observed that, as a result, his agency often lost staff to 

international organizations. One former DHS international affairs manager 

described this situation as a “total waste of human resources” and “a waste for 

the long-term interest of DHS.” 

We believe that DHS components’ retention and leveraging of employees 

with institutional knowledge and expertise in international work could be 

improved. To realize improvements, DHS components with a significant staff 

presence overseas should develop plans that present the agencies’ approach to 

leveraging staff expertise, and set benchmarks for international staff retention 

and the use of international skills and expertise. 

We recommend that the Commissioner of Customs and Border Protection, the 

Assistant Secretary of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the 

Commandant of the Coast Guard, the Director of the Secret Service, the 

Director for Citizenship and Immigration Services, and the Assistant Secretary 

for Transportation Security Administration: 

Recommendation #17: Develop, in collaboration with the Office of 

International Affairs, a long-range plan that defines how their organization 

will leverage the knowledge and experience of international staff, and submit 

completed plans to the Office of International Affairs for review. 

Return Rights Arrangements Are Unsatisfactory for Some DHS 

Staff Abroad 

DHS staff returning from assignments abroad face a number of unique 

challenges in obtaining appropriate jobs. 

One challenge DHS overseas staff face returning from international tours is 

finding a domestic position within narrow time constraints. All DHS 

components limit the length of the international tours of their direct hire staff 

and impose minimum and maximum time frames for them to serve abroad. 

Their employees are committed to remain abroad for all but the last several 

months of their tours of duty, and can effectively seek other jobs only during 

this last stretch. Unlike domestic counterparts, DHS staff abroad must, 

therefore, find their next job within a strict window of time. This window 

narrows further after accounting for employees’ need to pack and move their 

personal effects, and find appropriate housing and schools in the city to which 

they will be relocating. 

During the application process for domestic positions, many international staff 

have difficulty attending interviews. Because the cost of returning to the 

United States for multiple interviews is prohibitive in some cases, many staff 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

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must interview by phone. Simply coordinating a time for telephonic 

interviews can be a challenge because some staff operate in time zones with 

regular business hours that are incompatible with those of domestic offices. 

A third challenge facing DHS staff abroad is the result of their sometimes 

limited contact with domestic offices. Several DHS overseas staff said that 

redeployment after an overseas assignment can be difficult because they have 

little or no interaction with prospective managers in the United States. 

Therefore, staff in some positions perceive that they operate at a disadvantage 

relative to their domestic counterparts, many of whom have an opportunity to 

establish working relationships with hiring officials. 

Inaccurate and unfavorable perceptions of international work by some 

domestic managers present another challenge for staff returning from foreign 

assignments. DHS staff abroad said that domestic managers did not always 

understand what they did abroad and perceived that international work was 

not valued by their organization. Several program managers explained that 

overseas tours were not regarded as career enhancing within their organization 

because of the misperceptions of life overseas. According to them, many 

domestic offices see them as operating in an easy-going “diplomatic wine and 

cheese circuit.” Further, because some staff abroad do not have the same 

authorities as they do domestically, the fact that they are not exercising those 

authorities during their tours abroad leads some in domestic offices to sense 

that they are getting “rusty” in, for example, the use of firearms and 

application of investigative techniques. 

Another challenge is that several international positions have no domestic 

parallel. TSA Representatives, for example, have duties unlike those of any 

U.S.-based counterparts. As a result, their work experience may not be 

directly applicable to the domestic positions to which they seek to return. 

Finally, many DHS staff abroad experience difficulty returning to the 

domestic communities in which they are vested. Many DHS staff abroad 

transferred from domestic field offices where they maintain residences, and 

family and professional ties. These staff have a compelling interest to return 

to the field office or region they left. Accommodating this interest can be 

difficult because suitable position vacancies are not always available during 

the limited time frame international employees have to find domestic jobs. 

To address the professional challenges associated with returning to domestic 

positions from international assignments, a number of DHS programs have 

established international staff return rights policies. These arrangements vary 

across the department and are sometimes even different for staff in different 

offices within the same DHS component. In general, however, return rights 

policies offer returning staff an opportunity to express their preferences for 

particular jobs or job locations, and commit headquarters offices to provide 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

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returning staff with support in finding suitable domestic positions. In some 

cases, they guarantee that returning staff will be placed in a position at their 

current grade level or in the region of their choice. 

A number of DHS staff abroad reported uncertainty or dissatisfaction about 

their return rights arrangements. Staff uncertainty about their return rights 

sometimes appeared to be linked to components’ whose return rights policies 

had not been finalized. In other cases, DHS employees overseas said that 

their uncertainty in this area resulted from their return rights having changed 

during their tours of duty. Others said that their return rights were simply 

unclear. 

DHS employees abroad who said they understood their return rights were not 

always satisfied with them. The response we received from overseas staff to 

questions about their return rights arrangements was often negative. 

Many staff abroad were concerned about the level of support provided by 

headquarters offices in identifying suitable domestic placements. Although 

most DHS programs’ return rights policies note that they will assist staff in 

obtaining employment, many staff said that they did not receive much 

assistance from headquarters in obtaining jobs. Many staff abroad expressed 

the view that they were essentially on their own in seeking employment. 

Headquarters support was so limited in some cases that employees feared they 

would have no job to return to whatsoever. 

Several DHS employees overseas did not have confidence that their return 

rights would result in a satisfactory domestic placement. Some expressed 

concerns about maintaining their current grade level or job series. At least 

three DHS components can give temporary promotions to staff during their 

international tours. On returning to domestic assignments, however, these 

staff receive no guarantee that they will remain at the same grade level. In a 

few cases, staff also expressed concern about losing eligibility for positions in 

their previous job series. Because international staff often perform different 

functions from domestic counterparts, staff certification to perform domestic 

functions can expire while they are abroad. In one case, DHS employees 

reported that their agency’s policies dictated that they would have to repeat 

basic training to be eligible to occupy the position they left to come abroad. 

Staff dissatisfaction with return rights sometimes centered on their ability to 

return to positions in their home office or region. Some staff said that their 

return rights did not guarantee a placement in a small enough geographic 

region to be meaningful. Others doubted that their agencies would be able to 

place them in the domestic region from which they had departed. A number 

were concerned that they would be effectively forced to return to their 

component’s headquarters office in the Washington, DC metropolitan area. 

Due to cost of living concerns, and because these staff owned a home or 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

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maintained family ties in another region, they resisted the idea of a DC-based 

placement. One employee chose to return to a lower grade position to avoid 

placement at headquarters. 

This dissatisfaction with return rights arrangements has some adverse effects. 

In some cases, it has produced significant morale problems. Several 

employees abroad described disparities in DHS return rights arrangements, 

and said that their return rights were inferior to those of staff in other 

agencies. 

Concerns about the adequacy of return rights reportedly affect staff 

productivity. A number of DHS staff devote much of their final year abroad 

to job search efforts because they are concerned that they will not receive 

needed support from their headquarters offices. 

Inadequate return rights arrangements may also contribute to difficulties 

filling overseas billets. One DHS representative abroad said that his agency’s 

return rights arrangements created a disincentive for highly-qualified staff to 

apply for international assignments and led to difficulties filling positions 

around the world. Another employee said that if the limitations in her return 

rights had been apparent before she was deployed overseas, she would not 

have accepted the position. 

DHS components should develop return rights arrangements that fully address 

the distinctive redeployment needs of international employees. To ensure that 

they do so, the Office of International Affairs should articulate basic return 

rights principles to be applied department-wide. 

We recommend that the Assistant Secretary for International Affairs: 

Recommendation #18: Develop, in collaboration with the Chief Human 

Capital Officer, basic return rights principles for DHS staff abroad and ensure 

that DHS components’ return rights arrangements address those principles. 

Those principles should at minimum ensure that: 

•	 At least some agency hiring officials provide preferential consideration 

to returning staff in filling open positions, 

•	 Returning staff are afforded the opportunity to express their position 

and geographic placement preferences, 

•	 Headquarters offices properly support returning staff in finding 

suitable positions to which to return, and 

•	 Returning staff are guaranteed to return to a position at either their 

current grade level or in their geographic region of preference as long 

as they have not been subject to any adverse performance-related or 

disciplinary action. 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

Page 80 
 

Management Comments and OIG Analysis 

We received three responses to our draft report from DHS managers. One 

response was coordinated by the DHS Office of Policy and drew together the 

views of CBP, the Coast Guard, the National Preparedness and Programs 

Directorate (which includes the US-VISIT Program Office), the Office of 

Policy, S&T, and USCIS. We received a second response from ICE, 

reflecting its comments on the draft report. The Secret Service prepared a 

separate, third response. These three responses are attached in Appendix B. 

The first two responses constructively addressed our draft report and its 

recommendations. Our response from the Secret Service did not. We will 

address the first two responses before discussing the Secret Service’s 

comments on our draft report. 

In the consolidated response assembled by the Office of Policy, the Assistant 

Secretary for Policy writes that our report was well received by the 

contributing components and headquarters elements, and that they agreed that 

DHS overseas activities should be better coordinated. The Assistant Secretary 

noted, however, that our use of the term “operations” in the title and body of 

the draft report caused some consternation among components. We revised 

the title and body of our report in light of this concern. 

The contributors to the consolidated response concurred with 16 

recommendations in our draft, but indicated that more time and research 

would be required for the department to develop a complete response to the 

remaining two recommendations. For its part, ICE concurred with each of the 

four recommendations we directed to the agency for action. FEMA and 

FLETC did not provide a formal response to our draft, but informally neither 

expressed reservations about the two recommendations we addressed to them. 

In considering management responses to our recommendations, we assess 

whether a recommendation is “resolved” and “closed.” A recommendation 

“resolved” when DHS managers agree with us on (1) the reported findings 

and recommendations, (2) the corrective actions to be taken, and (3) target 

completion dates. A recommendation is “closed” when the agreed-upon 

corrective actions have been completed. 

Of the 18 recommendations in our report, we regard 8 as resolved and the 

remaining 10 as unresolved. All of the recommendations remain open. Our 

analysis of management responses to each of our recommendations follows. 

Recommendation #1: Develop, in consultation with all major DHS 

components, a DHS international strategic plan and establish a process for 

managing implementation of this plan. 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

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Consolidated DHS Response: DHS concurred with this recommendation 

and discussed future plans to consolidate and refine draft regional strategies 

and country plans after first integrating strategic-level component input. 

OIG Evaluation: We cannot determine from the department’s response 

whether Office of Policy plans will fully address our recommendation. We 

need more information from the Office of Policy to determine, for example, 

whether the product OIA plans to deliver will include all of the elements of a 

full-scale strategic plan. As we note in the report, the DHS international 

strategic plan should include a high-level discussion of the department’s 

current international engagements, a description of homeland security-related 

conditions abroad, and a statement about the department’s future vision in 

these areas. Nor is it apparent from management’s response that the strategic 

plan will be consistent with other strategic guidance and international 

commitments, or properly coordinated with the Department of State. In 

addition, department managers did not discuss whether they plan to assign 

responsibility for implementing related initiatives, and set related benchmarks 

and milestones, or describe how it plans to monitor and enforce compliance 

with the strategic plan. Due to the above, we consider this recommendation 

unresolved – open. 

Recommendation #2: Host, in collaboration with policy staff in other Office 

of Policy units, periodic meetings with international affairs staff from other 

DHS components on the international dimensions of different functional 

aspects of the DHS mission. 

Consolidated DHS Response: The department concurred with this 

recommendation and discussed its plans to increase the regularity of 

gatherings of DHS operational component heads and expand the list of 

attendees at these sessions. 

OIG Evaluation: The department’s response does not describe any plans to 

host functionally oriented sessions on international issues. This 

recommendation was intended to engender periodic meetings with 

components along functional lines (e.g., on immigration issues), in addition to 

those that already occur on a regional basis. Until OIA commits to host 

sessions of this nature, the status of this recommendation will remain 

unresolved – open. 

Recommendation #3: Ensure that all cleared Office of International Affairs 

staff have regular access to the Automated Message Handling System or a 

similar system with the capability of sending and receiving cables or other 

message traffic. 

Consolidated DHS Response: The Office of Policy concurred with this 

recommendation and has identified means for some OIA staff to send and 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

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receive cables. It notes, however, that facility constraints prevent OIA staff 

from accessing classified cable systems in their primary workspace. 

OIG Evaluation: It is unclear whether the Office of Policy’s prospective 

solution to access cable traffic fully addresses this recommendation. We will 

examine the office’s 90-day response to determine whether it plans for all 

cleared staff to have regular access to a system for sending and receiving 

cable traffic. In the meantime, we regard this recommendation as unresolved 

– open. 

Recommendation #4: Require components to notify the Office of 

International Affairs of their intent to pursue negotiations with foreign 

governments and review resulting draft agreements. 

Consolidated DHS Response: The department concurred with this 

recommendation, and the Office of Policy has incorporated related 

requirements into a draft management directive, which is currently under 

review. 

OIG Evaluation: This recommendation is resolved – open. We will close 

this recommendation when the draft management has been approved and 

issued in final, and after we confirm that it fully addresses our intent. 

Recommendation #5: Clearly define the Office of International Affairs’ 

purview and provide it with some authorities vis-à-vis DHS component 

international programs and offices to include, at minimum, the authority to: 

solicit component reporting; ensure that the office receives notice of 

component senior executive official travel to foreign countries and high-level 

foreign official visits; and direct component action in some circumstances. 

Consolidated DHS Response: The Office of Policy reports that it has 

incorporated related requirements into a draft management directive, but notes 

that some components expressed concern about one aspect of this 

recommendation. Some of the components that contributed to the 

consolidated response expressed concern about the language in our 

recommendation stating that OIA should have authority to direct component 

action in some circumstances. These components maintain that operational 

authority over their international activities should continue to reside with their 

organizations, and not OIA. For its part, OIA has interpreted our 

recommendation to mean that it should have authority to direct components 

on some administrative, logistical, or strategic DHS priority-policy matters. 

The consolidated response indicates that additional discussion between OIA 

and components is required on this point to eliminate ambiguity. 

OIG Evaluation: Our aim in making this recommendation is to ensure that 

OIA has the information and authority necessary to perform strategic 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

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management and coordination functions for the department. We did not 

communicate this aim as clearly as we could have in our draft report, and have 

refined portions of our final report to clarify our position. We now note, for 

example, that OIA is not well-positioned to direct DHS component 

international activities on a day-to-day, operational basis, and indicate that this 

function should continue to be the responsibility of component international 

affairs units. 

Because additional departmental discussion on this recommendation is 

anticipated, we cannot be assured that related provisions of the draft 

management directive will be adopted and, therefore, consider the 

recommendation unresolved – open. 

Recommendation #6: Develop, in collaboration with the Science and 

Technology Directorate and consultation with DHS component international 

offices, an international training and technical assistance and information and 

education exchange plan. The plan should account for DHS informational and 

educational requirements, and be consistent with an overarching DHS 

international affairs strategy. 

Consolidated DHS Response: OIA concurred with this recommendation and 

reports that it is developing a comprehensive record of DHS training and 

technical assistance activities. OIA believes that this comprehensive record 

will enable the department to monitor resources dedicated to these activities 

and align them with the department’s overall strategic objectives. 

In its response, OIA also observes that most DHS training and technical 

assistance is conducted in response to interagency and other government 

agency requests, rather than DHS-specific initiatives. 

OIG Evaluation: While the development of a catalog of DHS international 

training and technical assistance and information exchange activities is a 

positive step, it is not clear whether this effort would produce a forwardlooking plan for activities in these areas. Such a plan should discuss how 

future training and technical assistance and information exchange plans are 

consistent with the department’s strategic objectives. In examining how well 

current activities meet these objectives, we anticipate that the department will 

identify new opportunities to advance DHS interests. After it has completed 

this process, the department will be better prepared to pursue support for these 

activities in interagency settings or seek specific legislative authority to 

conduct them. In the meantime, this recommendation is unresolved – open. 

Recommendation #7: Ensure that appropriate staff are able to identify 

international training and technical assistance and information exchange 

opportunities and provide guidance on how to link those opportunities to 

available funding sources. 

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Consolidated DHS Response: The contributors to the consolidated response 

concurred with this recommendation and indicated that OIA will develop a 

reference document listing interagency training and technical assistance 

funding sources available to DHS, and provide this information to DHS 

components. They also note that OIA’s training and technical assistance 

coordinator will establish and maintain partnerships with key DOD and 

Department of State funding sources. 

ICE Response: ICE concurred with this recommendation. In its response, 

ICE describes its involvement in several international training and technical 

assistance programs, related funding sources, and associated interagency 

coordination efforts. ICE also expresses its willingness to provide OIA with 

information on ICE training programs, funding mechanisms, and future 

training schedules. 

OIG Evaluation: The promulgation of related reference materials and the 

cultivation of ties to Department of State and DOD training and technical 

assistance funders should improve the department’s posture in this area. This 

recommendation is resolved – open, and will remain so until the department 

has distributed related reference materials to DHS component staff, and the 

provided them with clear guidance on the process for initiating international 

training and technical assistance activities. 

Recommendation #8: Periodically submit a plan to the Office of 

International Affairs that specifies agency international training and technical 

assistance and information exchange goals and priorities, and that clearly 

indicates what internal resources will be dedicated to the achievement of those 

goals. 

Consolidated DHS Response: The department concurred with this 

recommendation and wrote that components will provide OIA with their 

training plans through a common database that is to reflect international 

training and technical assistance activities. 

ICE Response: ICE concurred with this recommendation, and has agreed to 

share its training goals and priorities with OIA. 

OIG Evaluation: In addition to articulating their international training and 

technical assistance and information exchange goals and priorities, we 

recommended that components clearly indicate what internal resources they 

plan to direct at those goals. Neither response specifies whether components 

plan to indicate what resources they plan to dedicate to the achievement of 

their training and technical assistance goals and priorities. Furthermore, while 

ICE has committed to share its international training goals and priorities with 

OIA, it is unclear whether OIA plans to capture these goals and priorities in its 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

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training and technical assistance database. Until we receive more information 

about efforts in these areas, we consider this recommendation unresolved – 

open. 

Recommendation #9: Coordinate with component international affairs 

managers to provide all senior component representatives abroad training and 

information to prepare them to provide trip support to visiting DHS staff, 

serve as a DHS information resource for the embassy, and perform basic 

representational functions on behalf of the department. 

Consolidated DHS Response: The department concurred with this 

recommendation and wrote that OIA will develop an orientation program or 

reference guide for senior DHS representatives abroad to provide them with 

basic information on key DHS programs and activities. 

OIG Evaluation: The department has identified and committed to 

appropriate action to address this recommendation. We look forward to 

reviewing the OIA reference guide or orientation program when it becomes 

available to confirm that it provides the information senior DHS component 

staff abroad require. This recommendation is resolved – open. 

Recommendation #10: Develop a process for assigning component staff 

abroad responsibility for department-level tasks that require attention in the 

field, and monitor component staff time commitments to these tasks and other 

DHS-level obligations assigned by embassy managers. 

Consolidated DHS Response: DHS concurred with this recommendation, 

but noted that some components expressed concern that the departmental 

support their international staff provide could take away from their primary 

operational missions abroad. OIA committed to coordinate a future 

discussion on this matter with senior headquarters and component officials. 

OIG Evaluation: It is not yet clear how OIA plans to proceed with the task 

assignment and monitoring functions we have recommended. In assigning 

component staff abroad responsibility for department-level tasks, we 

anticipated that OIA would account for their day-to-day operational 

responsibilities to their components. It is, therefore, appropriate for senior 

component officials to be consulted in the development of a process for 

assigning these tasks. Pending the outcome of these consultations, this 

recommendation is unresolved – open. 

According to the consolidated response, some components “expressed 

concern over unfunded mandates and their representatives being tasked to 

perform time-consuming generic duties at the expense of their primary 

missions.” Our report acknowledges the financial burden that components 

sometimes assume in providing DHS-level support abroad, and seeks to 

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address it in the following recommendation. While we recognize the 

importance of component operations abroad and the critical role that 

component staff play in many U.S. missions, we also understand that 

component responsibilities to higher-order departmental objectives ought 

sometimes take on an importance that eclipses these other functions. 

Recommendation #11: Budget for the cost of field activities conducted by 

component staff on the department’s behalf, and reimburse component field 

staff for justifiable costs incurred in the conduct of requested activities. 

Consolidated DHS Response: The department concurred with this 

recommendation and has incorporated language for this requirement into a 

draft DHS management directive. OIA also committed to collaborate with 

components to determine funding needs and appropriate budget submissions. 

OIG Evaluation: This recommendation is resolved – open. We will close 

the recommendation when DHS provides us with its related budget plans, and 

an indication that it has started reimbursing components for departmental 

costs. 

Recommendation #12: Establish clear policy aims and priorities in the 

theater to which all DHS attachés are to be deployed prior to their 

deployment. These policy aims and priorities may be articulated in regional 

or national engagement plans and should include cross-component policy 

efforts or policy engagements that cannot be otherwise addressed by DHS 

component representatives currently in the theater. 

Consolidated DHS Response: The department concurred with this 

recommendation. OIA plans to draw from its regional strategies and country 

plans, which are currently under development, in defining policy aims and 

priorities for DHS attachés. OIA expects to provide this guidance to outbound 

DHS attachés starting their assignments in 2009. 

OIG Evaluation: OIA plans appropriate corrective action in response to this 

recommendation. It will remain resolved – open, however, until OIA provides 

us with its related guidance to DHS attachés. 

Recommendation #13: Develop clear guidelines on how DHS attachés are 

expected to coordinate DHS staff and activities, and communicate these 

expectations to embassies and affected component staff. 

Consolidated DHS Response: DHS concurred with this recommendation, 

and OIA plans to lead a working group to develop policy guidance in this 

area. 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

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Some components expressed concern that chiefs of mission may view DHS 

attachés as the sole point of contact for DHS subject matter expertise. The 

consolidated response underscores, however, the view that subject matter 

expertise typically resides with component representatives at mission. 

OIG Evaluation: OIA indicated that it has plans to develop policy guidance 

on how DHS attachés are to coordinate DHS staff and activities at missions 

abroad, but has not provided us with timelines for developing and 

communicating this guidance. As a result, we regard this recommendation as 

unresolved – open. 

Recommendation #14: Develop, in collaboration with the Chief Human 

Capital Officer and DHS component international affairs offices, 

predeployment preparedness criteria for staff and their families abroad, and 

require component reporting on how they meet those preparedness standards 

for each international program and position type. 

Consolidated DHS Response: DHS concurred with this recommendation. 

In its response, OIA said it will lead a cross-component working group to 

identify the predeployment issues under consideration by each component, 

minimum standards that should be met by all components, and additional staff 

support services required. After the working group has submitted its 

recommendations, OIA plans to collaborate with the Chief Human Capital 

Officer to consider the recommendations and set related policy. 

OIG Evaluation: The department has outlined an appropriate process to 

address this recommendation and presented a corresponding time frame to 

complete related activities. This recommendation is resolved – open, pending 

the development of associated policy. 

Recommendation #15: Provide international staff with more information 

and training on Department of State administrative support services available 

to them abroad, and the forums and processes available to them for addressing 

concerns about the adequacy of those services. 

Consolidated DHS Response: DHS concurred with this recommendation, 

and reported that three components rely on Department of State administrative 

support units to help prepare their employees for overseas assignments. In its 

response, OIA wrote that it will coordinate with each component to identify 

Department of State administrative support services already in use and share 

this information among all components. 

ICE Response: ICE concurred with this recommendation, and explained that 

its outbound orientation training provides staff with information and training 

on Department of State administrative support services available to them 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

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abroad, as well as the forums and processes available to them for addressing 

concerns about the adequacy of those services. 

OIG Evaluation: The department appears to be taking appropriate action in 

this case. This recommendation is resolved, but will remain open until OIA 

completes its review of component use of Department of State administrative 

support services, and we receive confirmation that the results have been 

disseminated to all DHS components and offices with staff abroad. 

Recommendation #16: Establish, in collaboration with the Under Secretary 

for Management, minimum support requirements for staff abroad to ensure 

that they have the proper resources and receive adequate and timely support 

prior to and during their tours of duty. 

Consolidated DHS Response: DHS concurred with this recommendation. 

In its response, OIA reported plans to lead a cross-component working group 

to identify support services currently offered by each component, set 

minimum standards that should be met by all components, and identify any 

additional support services that may be appropriate. After the working group 

has submitted its recommendations, OIA is to collaborate with the Under 

Secretary for Management to develop new policy. 

OIG Evaluation: When implemented, the department’s plans will address 

our recommendation. This recommendation is resolved – open, pending the 

outcome of the working group discussions and OIA policy coordination with 

the Under Secretary for Management. 

Recommendation #17: Develop, in collaboration with the Office of 

International Affairs, a long-range plan that defines how their organization 

will leverage the knowledge and experience of international staff, and submit 

completed plans to the Office of International Affairs for review. 

Consolidated DHS Response: At the time of its response, the department 

indicated that it did not have sufficient information to determine whether to 

concur or non-concur with this recommendation. Because many components 

do not have international career paths, the department is still assessing the 

practicality of this recommendation. 

ICE Response: ICE concurred with this recommendation, and committed to 

provide OIA with a related long-range plan. 

OIG Evaluation: We recognize that several DHS components do not have an 

international career path, but think the department’s investment in its 

international staff calls for a more considered approach to leveraging staff 

skills and expertise. Because a number of DHS components and offices have 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

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not concurred with this recommendation, however, we consider it unresolved 

– open. 

Recommendation #18: Develop, in collaboration with the Chief Human 

Capital Officer, basic return rights principles for DHS staff abroad and ensure 

that DHS components’ return rights arrangements address those principles. 

Those principles should at minimum ensure that: 

•	 At least some agency hiring officials provide preferential consideration 

to returning staff in filling open positions, 

•	 Returning staff are afforded the opportunity to express their position 

and geographic placement preferences, 

•	 Headquarters offices properly support returning staff in finding 

suitable positions to which to return, and 

•	 Returning staff are guaranteed to return to a position at either their 

current grade level or in their geographic region of preference as long 

as they have not been subject to any adverse performance-related or 

disciplinary action. 

Consolidated DHS Response: The department concurred with the intent of 

this recommendation, but indicated that additional discussion and policy 

research would be needed before it could provide a full response. The 

department cited the complexity of the DHS workforce – one comprised of 

military, law enforcement, and civilian employees – and varied componentspecific approaches to return rights as the basis for its need for more time to 

consider the recommendation. 

OIG Evaluation: DHS components have established multiple approaches to 

return staff from assignments abroad. We have recommended the articulation 

of return rights principles so that all DHS employees deployed abroad are 

assured of certain basic conditions in returning to domestic positions. Until 

the department concurs with this recommendation and develops an 

appropriate action plan to address it, this recommendation will remain 

unresolved – open. 

Analysis of the Secret Service Response 

Unlike the other two responses we received, the Secret Service comments on 

our draft noted several serious concerns. In the Secret Service’s view, these 

issues with our draft were so profound and numerous that our draft could not 

be revised to address them. Indeed, the agency wrote that it could not support 

the draft report and generally opposed all of its recommendations. 

The Secret Service’s response to our draft report reflects a misreading of our 

report and related law. In its response, the Secret Service mischaracterizes our 

findings and recommendations. The Secret Service states that in our report 

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we find that “international missions conducted by DHS directorates and 

agencies are currently disjointed, deficient, inefficient, decentralized, chaotic, 

and ineffective.” While we observe that the DHS international management 

apparatus is complex and decentralized, we have not made the broad, negative 

assertions that the Secret Service has attributed to us. In fact, our report notes 

that, for the most part, DHS programs and activities abroad are performed 

independently of one another to no ill effect, and that operational coordination 

requirements abroad are extremely limited. 

The Secret Service writes that we found that the department should be 

restructured in such a way that “OIA substantially oversees, coordinates, 

controls, and operationally manages” component international missions. It 

further asserts that we recommend that OIA “operationally manage DHS law 

enforcement agencies.” Neither of these statements is accurate. Nowhere in 

our report do we write that OIA should “control” or “operationally manage” 

the execution of DHS international missions or the international activities of 

its law enforcement activities. Indeed, we share the Secret Service’s view that 

OIA should not exercise operational control over the Service’s protective and 

investigative activities, and would be troubled by such a development. 

Rather, we maintain that OIA should perform strategic management and 

coordination functions for the department’s international activities, and be 

provided the information and authority necessary to execute these limited 

functions. Although we communicated our views to this effect at some length 

in the report, we understand how it is possible for some readers to have 

developed an exaggerated sense of the authorities we recommend be conferred 

upon OIA. We have therefore revised some of our report to clarify our intent 

and reduce the chance that other readers will likewise mistake our meaning. 

The Secret Service’s response to our draft is also premised on a misreading of 

applicable law and departmental practice. For one, the Secret Service 

misunderstands our draft to have asserted that OIA authority to manage DHS 

international activities derives from authorities first vested in the Border and 

Transportation Security Directorate’s Office of International Enforcement. 

This is not so. As we note on page 14, OIA authority to manage international 

activities within DHS was directly conferred to the office in Section 879 of 

the Homeland Security Act. OIA authority in this regard is not limited to the 

international activities of agencies that were once part of the Border and 

Transportation Security Directorate, and extends to all DHS organizational 

elements. 

In its response, the Secret Service seems to imply that OIA cannot exercise 

authority over the agency because, in its view, law dictates that “Secret 

Service personnel only report to and are accountable to the Director” of the 

Service, and that the Director only reports to the DHS Secretary. This 

perspective does not account for the DHS Secretary’s direction to the 

department, including the Secret Service, over the last five years. Since DHS 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

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was created, DHS secretaries have delegated some of their authorities, 

including authorities over the Secret Service, to DHS headquarters offices. 

Through DHS Delegation 0400.2, for instance, the Secretary delegates to the 

DHS General Counsel “the authority to participate in and decide any legal 

matter within the [d]epartment.”79 

The DHS Secretary has also instituted an internal management directive 

system applicable throughout DHS.80 A number of DHS management 

directives establish oversight and reporting requirements for DHS 

components, including the Secret Service. According to one DHS 

management directive, for example, the DHS Chief Security Officer has the 

authority to suspend individuals’ access to DHS facilities, including those of 

the Secret Service.81 Further, as we discuss on page 35, DHS management 

directives have forged headquarters office dotted-line authority over related 

elements of component offices. 

The Secret Service also expressed concerns about our methodology. In 

particular, the agency’s response to our draft states that the OIG “did not seek 

an assessment from Secret Service executive personnel as to how the 

proposed findings and recommendations would impact upon Secret Service 

foreign offices and foreign operations.” In fact, as is standard practice, the 

OIG held an exit conference with representatives of a number of offices for 

this very purpose. Although four Secret Service representatives attended the 

session, none of them voiced these or any other significant concerns with the 

draft during the meeting or over the course of the following month. The 

Secret Service’s assertion in this regard is also misleading inasmuch as it 

suggests that the OIG met with a few, junior Secret Service staff during our 

fieldwork. To the contrary, during the course of our review, we interviewed 

18 Secret Service representatives, including six Agents-in-Charge or 

Regional-Agents-in-Charge. 

Finally, the Secret Service is critical of our report for not providing a detailed 

assessment of the success of individual DHS components’ performance 

abroad. As our review focused on DHS-level matters, specific questions 

about DHS component performance were not within the scope of our work. 

We plan to address individual components’ international mission performance 

in future reviews. 

The Secret Service wrote that it would be pleased for us to “interview Secret 

Service personnel responsible for development, management, budgeting, and 

support of Secret Service foreign offices and foreign operations,” and 

confident they could provide us with “relevant metrics, assessments, budgets, 

79 DHS Delegation 0400.2: Delegation to the General Counsel, September 14, 2004, Section II(B)(1). 80 DHS Management Directive 112-01: Directives System, April 10, 2008. 

81 DHS Management Directive 11005: Suspending Access to DHS Facilities, Sensitive Information, and IT Systems, 

March 23, 2006, Section VI(A)(1). 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

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strategic planning, and other reliable data reflecting the substantial impact and 

success of Secret Service operational activities abroad.” In determining which 

components to engage in future reviews on component international mission 

performance, we will consider the Secret Service’s openness to sharing 

information and interest in demonstrating the success of its international 

activities and robustness of interaction with other law enforcement agencies. 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

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Appendix A 

Purpose, Scope, and Methodology 

We conducted this review to evaluate the effectiveness of the department’s 

management of its international programs and activities. We framed our 

review around four objectives to: 

•	 Determine the composition of DHS’ international programs and 

activities, 

•	 Evaluate the strategic management of the department’s international 

enterprise, 

•	 Evaluate communication and coordination across component 

programs, and 

•	 Examine the quality and extent of DHS representation in international 

settings. 

We performed our fieldwork from November 2006 to October 2007. During 

this period, we conducted more than 240 interviews. We met with DHS staff 

and officials from 17 DHS component offices and agencies: CBP, Coast 

Guard, FEMA, FLETC, I&A, ICE, Management Directorate, National 

Protection and Programs Directorate, Office of Counternarcotics 

Enforcement, Office of Operations Coordination, Office of Health Affairs, 

Office of the Citizenship and Immigration Services Ombudsman, Office of 

Policy, S&T Directorate, Secret Service, TSA, and USCIS. We also 

interviewed representatives of four other cabinet-level departments: the 

Departments of State, Justice, and Commerce, and the Central Intelligence 

Agency. 

To gain a field-level perspective on DHS management of international 

programs and activities, we traveled to U.S. embassies and consulates abroad 

and other DHS international work sites, and interviewed DHS and Department 

of State representatives on location, as well as other federal agencies and 

partners. We visited staff in nine U.S. missions abroad, specifically the U.S. 

missions to Belgium, Canada, the European Union, Germany, Mexico, 

NATO, the Netherlands, Thailand, and the United Kingdom. We visited staff 

in 13 cities in seven foreign countries: Amsterdam (Netherlands), Bangkok 

(Thailand), Brussels (Belgium), Felixstowe (United Kingdom), Frankfurt 

(Germany), The Hague (Netherlands), Laem Chabang (Thailand), London 

(United Kingdom), Mexico City (Mexico), Ottawa (Canada), Rotterdam 

(Netherlands), Southampton (United Kingdom), and Toronto (Canada). 

We supplemented these interviews with extensive document review and 

analysis efforts. In particular, we examined policies and procedures for DHS 

employees abroad, memoranda of agreement or understanding, and other 

governing documents. Additionally, we reviewed standard reports, 

performance metrics, and communications between field and headquarters 

elements and DHS components and the Office of Policy. We also studied 

applicable laws, regulations, and appropriations information as they relate to 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

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Appendix A 

Purpose, Scope, and Methodology 

the department and to its components’ overseas missions, responsibilities, and 

activities. 

This review was conducted under the authority of the Inspector General Act of 

1978, as amended, and according to the Quality Standards for Inspections 

issued by the President’s Council on Integrity and Efficiency. 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

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Appendix B 

Management’s Comments to the Draft Report 

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Appendix B 

Management’s Comments to the Draft Report 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

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Appendix B 

Management’s Comments to the Draft Report 

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Appendix B 

Management’s Comments to the Draft Report 

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Appendix B 

Management’s Comments to the Draft Report 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

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Appendix B 

Management’s Comments to the Draft Report 

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Appendix B 

Management’s Comments to the Draft Report 

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Appendix B 

Management’s Comments to the Draft Report 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

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Appendix B 

Management’s Comments to the Draft Report 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

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Appendix B 

Management’s Comments to the Draft Report 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

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Appendix B 

Management’s Comments to the Draft Report 

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Appendix B 

Management’s Comments to the Draft Report 

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Appendix B 

Management’s Comments to the Draft Report 

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Appendix B 

Management’s Comments to the Draft Report 

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Appendix B 

Management’s Comments to the Draft Report 

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Appendix B 

Management’s Comments to the Draft Report 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

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Appendix B 

Management’s Comments to the Draft Report 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

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Appendix C 

Recommendations 

Recommendation #1: Develop, in consultation with all major DHS 

components, a DHS international strategic plan and establish a process for 

managing implementation of this plan. 

Recommendation #2: Host, in collaboration with policy staff in other Office 

of Policy units, periodic meetings with international affairs staff from other 

DHS components on the international dimensions of different functional 

aspects of the DHS mission. 

Recommendation #3: Ensure that all cleared Office of International Affairs 

staff have regular access to the Automated Message Handling System or a 

similar system with the capability of sending and receiving cables or other 

message traffic. 

Recommendation #4: Require components to notify the Office of 

International Affairs of their intent to pursue negotiations with foreign 

governments and review resulting draft agreements. 

Recommendation #5: Clearly define the Office of International Affairs’ 

purview and provide it with some authorities vis-à-vis DHS component 

international programs and offices to include, at minimum, the authority to: 

solicit component reporting; ensure that the office receives notice of 

component senior executive official travel to foreign countries and high-level 

foreign official visits; and direct component action in some circumstances. 

Recommendation #6: Develop, in collaboration with the Science and 

Technology Directorate and consultation with DHS component international 

offices, an international training and technical assistance and information and 

education exchange plan. The plan should account for DHS informational and 

educational requirements, and be consistent with an overarching DHS 

international affairs strategy. 

Recommendation #7: Ensure that appropriate staff are able to identify 

international training and technical assistance and information exchange 

opportunities and provide guidance on how to link those opportunities to 

available funding sources. 

Recommendation #8: Periodically submit a plan to the Office of 

International Affairs that specifies agency international training and technical 

assistance and information exchange goals and priorities, and that clearly 

indicates what internal resources will be dedicated to the achievement of those 

goals. 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

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Appendix C 

Recommendations 

Recommendation #9: Coordinate with component international affairs 

managers to provide all senior component representatives abroad training and 

information to prepare them to provide trip support to visiting DHS staff, 

serve as a DHS information resource for the embassy, and perform basic 

representational functions on behalf of the department. 

Recommendation #10: Develop a process for assigning component staff 

abroad responsibility for department-level tasks that require attention in the 

field, and monitor component staff time commitments to these tasks and other 

DHS-level obligations assigned by embassy managers. 

Recommendation #11: Budget for the cost of field activities conducted by 

component staff on the department’s behalf, and reimburse component field 

staff for justifiable costs incurred in the conduct of requested activities. 

Recommendation #12: Establish clear policy aims and priorities in the 

theater to which all DHS attachés are to be deployed prior to their 

deployment. These policy aims and priorities may be articulated in regional 

or national engagement plans and should include cross-component policy 

efforts or policy engagements that cannot be otherwise addressed by DHS 

component representatives currently in the theater. 

Recommendation #13: Develop clear guidelines on how DHS attachés are 

expected to coordinate DHS staff and activities, and communicate these 

expectations to embassies and affected component staff. 

Recommendation #14: Develop, in collaboration with the Chief Human 

Capital Officer and DHS component international affairs offices, 

predeployment preparedness criteria for staff and their families abroad, and 

require component reporting on how they meet those preparedness standards 

for each international program and position type. 

Recommendation #15: Provide international staff with more information 

and training on Department of State administrative support services available 

to them abroad, and the forums and processes available to them for addressing 

concerns about the adequacy of those services. 

Recommendation #16: Establish, in collaboration with the Under Secretary 

for Management, minimum support requirements for staff abroad to ensure 

that they have the proper resources and receive adequate and timely support 

prior to and during their tours of duty. 

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Recommendations 

Recommendation #17: Develop, in collaboration with the Office of 

International Affairs, a long-range plan that defines how their organization 

will leverage the knowledge and experience of international staff, and submit 

completed plans to the Office of International Affairs for review. 

Recommendation #18: Develop, in collaboration with the Chief Human 

Capital Officer, basic return rights principles for DHS staff abroad and ensure 

that DHS components’ return rights arrangements address those principles. 

Those principles should at minimum ensure that: 

•	 At least some agency hiring officials provide preferential consideration 

to returning staff in filling open positions, 

•	 Returning staff are afforded the opportunity to express their position 

and geographic placement preferences, 

•	 Headquarters offices properly support returning staff in finding 

suitable positions to which to return, and 

•	 Returning staff are guaranteed to return to a position at either their 

current grade level or in their geographic region of preference as long 

as they have not been subject to any adverse performance-related or 

disciplinary action. 

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DHS International Programs 

DHS components’ overseas missions encompass a broad range of distinct 

operational programs and strategic objectives. In this appendix, we describe 

major DHS international programs and activities by component. The 

programs and activities described in this appendix do not represent a complete 

accounting of DHS efforts abroad, and instead focus on particularly 

significant engagements. 

Coast Guard 

Various units oversee Coast Guard international activities. The 

Commandant’s Office of International Affairs addresses international policy 

issues for the Coast Guard and helps direct involvement in international 

training activities. Operational management of Coast Guard international 

activities falls to six other units in the organization: the Marine Safety, 

Security, and Stewardship Directorate; the two Coast Guard Area Commands; 

Acquisitions; Intelligence and Criminal Investigations, and Human Resources 

Directorates. 

Marine Safety, Security, and Stewardship Directorate 

International Port Security Program 

Congress established the International Port Security Program through the 

Maritime Transportation Security Act of 2002. Under the program, the Coast 

Guard reviews security and antiterrorism measures at foreign ports, and 

invites other nations to assess security efforts at U.S. ports. International Port 

Security Liaison Officers build and maintain relationships with foreign 

government counterparts, and facilitate Coast Guard port security visits to 

foreign ports. During these visits, liaison officers work with Coast Guard 

technical specialists to promote port security best practices, assess compliance 

with international port security standards, and work with government 

counterparts to improve their port security posture. 

The Coast Guard has 29 International Port Security Liaison Officers. Of 

these, 22 are stationed abroad in offices in the Netherlands, Japan, and 

Singapore. Overseas deployments are typically three to four years in length. 

Liaison and Security Assistance Officers 

The Coast Guard has 16 liaison and security assistance officers in 13 

countries. Liaison officer activities typically relate to law enforcement 

matters, counternarcotics efforts, high sea fisheries protection, migration, and 

trade facilitation issues. For their part, Coast Guard Security Assistance 

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Officers provide liaison services with host country militaries. These officers 

serve between one and three years abroad. 

While many of these officers are drawn from the Coast Guard’s Marine 

Safety, Security, and Stewardship Directorate, a number of them are also 

provided by the Area Commands, and the Office of International Affairs. 

Atlantic and Pacific Area Commands 

National Defense Operations 

The Coast Guard is one of the nation’s five armed forces. By statute, the 

Coast Guard is an armed force, operating jointly in the national defense arena 

at any time, and functioning as a specialized service under the Navy in time of 

war or when directed by the President. The Coast Guard has special 

capabilities to contribute in five major national-defense missions – maritime 

intercept operations; deployed port operations, port security and defense; 

theater security cooperation; environmental defense operations; and coastal 

sea control operations. The Coast Guard deploys specialized capabilities to 

assist U.S. military combatant commanders conduct operations to deter 

unwanted activity and build partner capacities, and is responsible for 

responding to emerging homeland security and defense threats in the maritime 

domain. The Coast Guard routinely operates with DOD forces and under 

DOD programs. 

Coast Guard cutters and other forces support theater security cooperation 

operations under the National Security and Defense Strategies. They 

participate in multinational exercises with the U.S. Navy in the Caribbean, 

South America and Central America and provide selected training assistance 

to 50 nations with mobile training teams worldwide. High endurance cutters 

regularly participate in U.S. Pacific Command’s Combined Afloat Readiness 

and Training exercises with countries in the western Pacific. Additionally, 

Coast Guard cutters make port calls to improve military relations and expand 

on mutual cooperation and information sharing. 

Out of Hemisphere Operations 

U.S. military combatant commanders plan and conduct operations in their 

assigned geographic regions around the world. Coast Guard assets support 

combatant commanders’ efforts to implement the National Military Strategy, 

National Defense Strategy, Cooperative Strategy for 21st Century Sea Power, 

and regional contingency plans. The Coast Guard’s contributes high 

endurance cutters, medium endurance cutters, patrol boats, law enforcement 

detachments, and port security units to combatant commanders. As many of 

the world’s naval forces are structure around and focused on performing coast 

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guard functions, combatant commanders often seek U.S. Coast Guard 

capabilities to support their theater security cooperation initiatives, and help 

meet the demand for operational assistance and support from foreign nations. 

Operation Iraqi Freedom 

The Coast Guard works alongside U.S. Navy and allied naval units in the 

Arabian Gulf. Six patrol boats, two law enforcement detachments, and 

supporting logistics and command and control elements totaling 250 

personnel support the naval component commander’s prosecution of the war 

on terrorism at sea and protect off shore Iraqi oil infrastructure. 

Operation Enduring Freedom 

Since January 2002, the Coast Guard has maintained waterside security for 

detainee operations using port security units and maritime safety and security 

teams in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Additional resources are being sent to 

Guantanamo Bay to provide security for the duration of upcoming military 

tribunals. 

Acquisitions Directorate 

Foreign Military Sales 

The Coast Guard Foreign Military Sales program seeks to strengthen the 

maritime services of international allies and partners, while providing revenue 

to the Coast Guard and its private sector partners. There are two facets of the 

program. Foreign navies and coast guards purchase equipment from the U.S. 

Coast Guard that it plans to retire. Often these material purchases are paired 

with Coast Guard training, overhaul, and support services. In other cases, 

foreign navies and coast guards are invited to participate in U.S. Coast Guard 

procurements. This foreign participation can reduce unit costs for the U.S. 

Coast Guard by creating economies of scale for manufacturers. Foreign 

recipients of these materials and services reimburse the U.S. Coast Guard. 

In 2007, the Coast Guard had 35 open foreign military sales contracts with 22 

different countries. 

Intelligence and Criminal Investigations Directorate 

Coast Guard Attachés 

The Coast Guard contributes staff to the Defense Attaché System to serve as 

Coast Guard attachés abroad. Coast Guard attachés perform representational 

duties, observe and report on conditions in the host nation, advise the Chief of 

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Mission, and maintain relationships with local military counterparts. 

Participants in the program receive extensive training prior to their 2 to 3-year 

tours abroad. During their tours, they report to the Defense attaché at the 

mission. There are currently 11 Coast Guard personnel serving in the Defense 

Attaché System, nine attachés and two operational coordinators. 

Human Resources Directorate 

International Training Team 

The Coast Guard has dedicated a 50-person training unit to respond to training 

and technical assistance requests made by foreign governments. The unit 

provides international training and consulting services in maritime law 

enforcement, marine safety and environmental protection, small boat 

operations and maintenance, search and rescue, and infrastructure 

development. It conducts approximately 100 training missions a year. 

Customs and Border Protection 

Five offices in CBP manage international activities. A number of major 

international programs are managed by the CBP Office of Field Operations, 

while several other international initiatives are overseen by its International 

Affairs and Trade Relations office. The Border Patrol, Office of Air and 

Marine, and Office of Intelligence and Operations Coordination also engage 

in international activities. 

Office of Field Operations 

Preclearance Operations 

CBP conducts immigration and customs screening of U.S.-bound cruise ship, 

ferry, and airline passengers through its international preclearance operations. 

CBP passenger screening at preclearance sites abroad is similar to domestic 

screening, and like their U.S.-based counterparts, preclearance staff make 

determinations of passenger admissibility to the United States. Passengers 

who travel to the United States through preclearance locations are, therefore, 

not subject to additional CBP screening upon arrival. 

CBP has about 700 preclearance positions across its 15 operating locations. 

Preclearance operations are staffed by CBP inspectors on 2-year tours of duty 

that can be extended to a 5-year term. 

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Container Security Initiative 

CBP inaugurated its Container Security Initiative in 2002 to extend cargo 

security measures beyond U.S. borders. Working with host governments in 

foreign ports, CBP officers assess the risk of individual cargo containers 

before they board vessels for delivery to the United States. CBP officers 

review shipment data, observe local inspections, and exchange information 

with host governments. 

The Container Security Initiative operates out of 58 international ports in 33 

countries. To support these operations, CBP has about 200 positions abroad. 

Secure Freight Initiative 

Launched in December 2006 in response to a requirement in the SAFE Port 

Act, the Secure Freight Initiative aims to enhance cargo risk assessment and 

screening for nuclear and radiological material before shipments reach the 

United States.82 A collaborative effort between DHS, the Department of 

Energy, and the Department of State, it builds off of the CBP Container 

Security Initiative and the Department of Energy’s Megaports Initiative. 

Under the initiative, cargo is screened using nonintrusive inspection 

equipment, radiation portal monitors, and optical character recognition 

equipment. Data on U.S. shipments gathered by this equipment is transmitted 

to and reviewed by CBP Container Security Initiative staff on-site and the 

U.S.-based CBP National Targeting Center, and is made available to 

participating foreign governments. If a risk is detected, CBP officials can 

request the foreign government to open and inspect the cargo or to hold the 

cargo until the risk is resolved. 

The Secure Freight Initiative is fully operational in three foreign ports, and is 

operational on a limited basis in four other locations. The Initiative does not 

have any foreign-based staff of its own, and instead leverages Container 

Security Initiative employees already in the field. 

Immigration Advisory Program 

CBP established the Immigration Advisory Program in 2004 to address the 

possibility of terrorists and other high-risk passengers boarding commercial 

aircraft bound for the United States. Working with airlines and foreign 

counterparts, CBP officers overseas identify high-risk passengers through 

advance targeting and assessments of passenger travel documents. Program 

staff also train local air carriers and foreign authorities on migration trends, 

82 SAFE Port Act of 2006 (P.L. 109-347), § 231; codified at 6 U.S.C. § 981. 

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fraud detection, and required documentation for entering the United States. 

CBP officers in the program deploy for 6-month tours of duty. 

Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism 

Initiated in November 2001, the Customs-Trade Partnership Against 

Terrorism is a government to private industry program that seeks to strengthen 

international supply chains and facilitate the movement of secure cargo. 

Private-sector program participants agree to implement security practices 

throughout their international supply chains in exchange for customs 

processing benefits. CBP program staff review and validate participants’ 

security procedures to ensure that they are effectively implemented and meet 

program requirements. The partnership had 6,000 members in 2007. 

To date, CBP has not permanently deployed staff overseas to support the 

program, but instead dispatches teams abroad to conduct validations of 

participating organizations and facilities. In 2006, 120 program staff 

participated in international assessments of this kind. 

Office of International Affairs and Trade Relations 

CBP Attaché Program 

In 2004, CBP began placing attachés at foreign embassies to oversee its 

international efforts. CBP attachés support their agency’s planning and 

organization, administration, and coordination of activities in the countries to 

which they are assigned. They represent CBP within embassies and in 

negotiations with foreign representatives, and provide leadership and guidance 

to other CBP staff in country engaged in initiatives to increase border, cargo, 

and passenger security. 

CBP attachés currently serve in 15 countries and are deployed for 2-year tours 

that can be extended to five years. 

Training and Assistance Programs 

The CBP Training and Assistance Division manages multiyear grant programs 

to provide training to international partners. The division facilitates training 

in the areas of nuclear nonproliferation, port security, counter-narcotics, 

document fraud, and Iraq reconstruction. 

Although a substantial number of domestic CBP staff work on international 

training efforts, the agency deploys only a few employees abroad to support 

training initiatives. 

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Office of Border Patrol 

Border Patrol International Activities 

The Border Patrol is charged with protecting the integrity of U.S. borders 

between recognized ports of entry. To execute this mission effectively, the 

Border Patrol has pursued a number of exchanges with Mexico and Canada. 

The Border Patrol engages in information and intelligence sharing, 

participates in joint training activities, and coordinates on cross-border crime 

and counterterrorism measures with Canadian counterparts along the northern 

border. Border Patrol exchange with Mexican authorities is frequent and 

intensive. Mexican liaison units at Border Patrol sectors along the border 

have daily exchange with Mexican officials. Border Patrol officials work with 

Mexican authorities to assist them in prosecuting smugglers whose crimes do 

not meet U.S. thresholds for prosecution. The Border Patrol also collaborates 

with Mexican authorities in its Internal Repatriation Program, which assists 

illegal Mexican migrants in returning to their homes in the Mexican interior. 

In addition, the Border Patrol collaborates with other nations to strengthen 

their border control efforts. The Border Patrol has longstanding training 

initiatives in Central America, and a growing effort in Iraq. 

The Border Patrol has two permanent staff in both Canada and Mexico, and 

several additional employees on temporary detail in Mexico. The Border 

Patrol has 11 agents in Iraq to train Iraqi border enforcement officers in border 

management techniques. 

Office of Air and Marine 

Air and Marine International Activities 

The Office of Air and Marine works to prevent the illegal movement of 

people, drugs, and other contraband into the United States through the 

coordinated use of CBP aviation and maritime assets. Air and Marine 

operations focus on detecting, monitoring, and intercepting air- and watercraft 

engaged in illegally transporting aliens, drugs, and other forms of contraband. 

To further this effort, Air and Marine maintains some permanent and 

temporary positions overseas. The office has two permanent staff and several 

temporary employees in Mexico to assist Mexican authorities indentify 

suspect aircraft. In addition, CBP Air and Marine maintains a permanent 

employee in the Bahamas and sometimes details staff to Colombia and the 

Dominican Republic. 

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Federal Emergency Management Agency 

FEMA maintains an international program to coordinate international 

emergency management activities and provide training abroad. FEMA 

coordinates with their Canadian and Mexican counterparts on cross-border 

emergency assistance efforts, provides training to foreign emergency 

management specialists, and participates in related multilateral forums. 

FEMA has two employees stationed abroad, both of whom work to represent 

the U.S. government positions on civil emergency planning issues at the North 

Atlantic Treaty Organization headquarters in Brussels, Belgium. FEMA does 

not otherwise station personnel abroad, but deploys staff for short-term 

assignments such as training. 

Federal Law Enforcement Training Center 

The FLETC International Training and Technical Assistance Division 

emerged in the 1980s from efforts to counter international hijackings and 

financial crimes. The International Training and Technical Assistance 

Division now extends law enforcement training abroad to curb international 

crime, drug-trafficking, and terrorist activity, and to protect the United States. 

It coordinates training and assistance requests, partners with the Department 

of State to support and manage International Law Enforcement Academies 

abroad, and facilitates training for select foreign nationals. 

Currently, the International Training and Technical Assistance Division has 

ten staff. While the program does not maintain a core group of instructors 

abroad, some individual instructors travel overseas to conduct training on a 

temporary basis. FLETC has two staff permanently stationed abroad at 

International Law Enforcement Academies in El Salvador and Botswana. 

Immigration and Customs Enforcement 

All ICE international programs are managed by its Office of International 

Affairs. 

Office of International Affairs 

International Investigative Operations 

ICE has more than 300 positions abroad geared toward the support of the 

agency’s investigative mission. These international staff coordinate and 

support the international dimensions of ICE investigations, and work with 

foreign law enforcement entities to provide them with U.S.-based information 

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related to their criminal cases. ICE attachés abroad provide information and 

investigative support for cases involving: child exploitation and human 

trafficking; travel document fraud; human, narcotics, and weapons smuggling; 

financial and cyber crimes; trade enforcement and financial crimes; and export 

enforcement issues. In addition, ICE pursues a range of activities to increase 

foreign counterparts’ investigative capabilities. 

ICE staff abroad are predominantly criminal investigators, but the agency also 

has a number of research specialists and administrative support staff overseas. 

ICE investigators and research specialists tours of duty abroad are typically 

three years in length with an option to extend an additional two years. These 

staff are limited to a maximum of ten years abroad over the course of their 

careers. 

Visa Security Program 

DHS assigns ICE special agents to overseas posts under Section 428 of the 

Homeland Security Act to review individual visa applications, initiate 

investigations of visa security related matters, and provide advice and training 

to Department of State consular officers. Through these efforts, the ICE Visa 

Security Program seeks to enhance national security and public safety by 

preventing terrorists, criminals, and other ineligible applicants from receiving 

U.S. visas, and maximizing the visa process as a law enforcement and 

counterterrorism tool. 

The ICE Visa Security operations began in Saudi Arabia in 2003, and the 

program has since expanded to nine locations in eight countries. There are 24 

staff overseas. These ICE special agents have 3-year tours of duty with the 

option to extend an additional two years. Tours to particularly dangerous 

posts or hardship posts may be limited to one to two years. 

International Deportation Operations 

In FY 2006, ICE removed 187,513 improperly documented individuals from 

the United States. The preparation for and execution of deportation orders in 

these cases is sometimes complex. Before ICE can deport an individual, it 

must first establish the alien’s nationality and coordinate with the receiving 

nation to ensure that it will accept the return of its national. Moreover, 

deportations to distant nations often require coordination with countries that 

will be transited in route. ICE has recently deployed staff abroad to assist 

with related challenges. 

As of July 2007, ICE had 11 employees abroad supporting its deportation 

mission. Many of these staff are senior Deportation Liaison Officers selected 

on the basis of their experience working with embassies and consulates. 

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National Preparedness and Programs Directorate 

Office of Cyber Security and Communications 

National Cyber Security Division 

The National Cyber Security Division works to secure cyberspace and 

America’s cyber assets in cooperation with public, private, and international 

entities. The Division’s international role stems from several strategic plans 

and directives, including the National Strategy to Secure Cyber Space, 

Presidential Decision Directive 7, National Infrastructure Preparedness Plan, 

the Information Technology Sector Specific Plan, and National Response 

Plan. The National Cyber Security Division maintains international 

engagements and working relationships with the United Kingdom, Australia, 

New Zealand, and Canada. The division participates in international 

initiatives including the International Watch and Warning Network and the 

Security and Prosperity Partnership between the United States, Canada, and 

Mexico. The National Cyber Security Division also provides subject matter 

experts to a number of multilateral organizations. 

National Communications System 

The National Communications System is a consortium of 23 federal 

departments and agencies that seek to ensure the availability of a viable 

national security and emergency preparedness communications infrastructure. 

The National Communications System participates in several international 

working groups that involve Canada; the United Kingdom; NATO; and the 

International Telecommunications Committee. In addition, the National 

Communications System conducts activities in support of several international 

agreements, including the Security and Prosperity Partnership with Mexico 

and Canada. 

Office of Infrastructure Protection 

The Office of Infrastructure Protection was established to protect U.S. critical 

infrastructure and key assets. The Office of Infrastructure Protection has 

some international engagements because a number of infrastructures vital to 

the United States cross borders or have international dimensions (e.g., dams 

and bridges spanning borders). The Office of Infrastructure Protection has 

identified cross-border critical infrastructures and conducted joint 

infrastructure assessments with Mexican and Canadian counterparts. In 

addition, it has participated in multilateral forums that have a nexus to its 

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mission, provided guidance to other countries, and promoted best practices in 

the protection of critical infrastructure and key resources abroad. 

US-VISIT Program 

US-VISIT is an automated, biometric identity verification system that is 

primarily used to screen foreign nationals applying for visas and immigration 

benefits, or seeking entry into the United States. The US-VISIT Program 

Office aims to promote the development of compatible systems abroad, and 

increase international sharing of trade and travel information. The program 

office is working toward the development of compatible biometric systems 

across Canada, Mexico, and the United States, and is pursuing a related 

bilateral agreement with Mexico. In addition, the office is promoting the 

development of information systems and processes similar to US-VISIT in 

Central and South America, Europe, and Australia. 

One US-VISIT employee is currently stationed abroad to promote program 

best practices and lessons learned in Europe, and collaborate with counterparts 

in the United Kingdom on the development of a system similar to 

US-VISIT. 

Office of Counternarcotics Enforcement 

Established in 2003, the Office of Counternarcotics Enforcement monitors 

connections between illegal drug trafficking and terrorist activities. The 

office coordinates the department’s counternarcotics policies, efforts to track 

and sever the drug-terror connection, and facilitates other DHS components 

counterdrug operations. 

While the office does not have staff overseas, it interacts with several 

international partners on behalf of the U.S. government in order to share 

information and increase mutual counterdrug cooperation and support, and 

improve other nations’ capabilities in this area. 

Office of Health Affairs 

The Office of Health Affairs oversees DHS global health security activities 

and provides subject-matter expertise on international aspects of avian and 

pandemic influenza and other global health security issues, international 

medical readiness, and emergency public health planning. The office liaises 

with senior foreign partners, international private sector representatives, 

technical and professional associations, and other federal agencies to develop 

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solutions to global health security issues with the potential to affect national 

medical preparedness and domestic security. 

Office of Intelligence and Analysis 

A member of the Intelligence Community, the Office of Intelligence and 

Analysis gathers, analyzes, and shares homeland security-related intelligence 

to other DHS offices, federal agencies outside of the department, state and 

local governments, and DHS private sector partners. 

The Office of Intelligence and Analysis gathers and analyzes information on 

domestic threats and vulnerabilities and other DHS mission areas. Some of 

this information and analysis relates to other nations and their citizens, and 

some originates from international sources. The office has worked with 

foreign counterparts to identify shared intelligence interests and requirements, 

and disseminates a subset of its intelligence products to allies and friends 

abroad. No Office of Intelligence and Analysis staff are stationed abroad, but 

representatives of the office travel abroad to meet with foreign counterparts 

from time to time. 

Office of Operations Coordination 

The Office of Operations Coordination provides situational awareness, 

strategic decisionmaking support, incident management, and contingency 

planning services for DHS. It oversees the principal operations center for 

DHS, the National Operations Center, which collects and combines threat and 

operational information from federal, state, and local governments, and 

private sector organizations. 

The office acts as liaison and shares information with foreign operations 

centers in Canada and the United Kingdom, engages Australian operational 

staff through an information system portal, and hosts visitors from other 

nations. The office manages its international engagements from headquarters 

and has no permanent staff abroad. 

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Office of Policy 

Office of Policy Development 

Visa Waiver Program Office 

Citizens of select nations are permitted to travel to the United States without a 

visa for tourism or business purposes under the Visa Waiver Program. 

Established in 1986, the program was designed to promote travel, trade, and 

student exchanges between the United States and partner countries. Twentyseven countries currently participate in the program. 

The DHS Visa Waiver Program Office is responsible for ensuring the 

integrity of program. It does so by developing passport and travel security 

requirements for countries to qualify for visa waiver status. The office also 

conducts reviews of participating and pending member countries’ immigration 

and security measures to ensure compliance with program requirements. The 

office also assesses the effect that a country’s participation in the program will 

have on U.S. security, immigration and law enforcement interests. 

Privacy Office 

Established in the department’s enabling legislation, the Privacy Office’s 

mission is to sustain privacy protections and transparency of government 

operations, while achieving the DHS goals. The office seeks to engage 

international partners to foster international cooperation and understanding of 

privacy issues related to DHS missions and operations. The Privacy Office 

conducts outreach activities with international partners, participates in 

multilateral privacy forums, and advises the department on privacy-related 

elements of international agreements. The Privacy Office has no staff abroad. 

Science and Technology Directorate 

Under the Homeland Security Act and recent legislation implementing 

recommendations of the 9/11 Commission, S&T is responsible for engaging 

nations friendly to the United States to develop and share information and 

technologies that can strengthen domestic security. In response to these 

mandates, S&T established an International Programs Division to coordinate 

international outreach efforts aimed at tapping into global science and 

technology communities. S&T has developed several international 

partnerships leading to 20 research projects in areas such as air cargo 

explosive detection, chemical and biological countermeasures, critical 

infrastructure protection, and incident management. S&T has formalized 

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science and technology cooperation arrangements with Australia, Canada, 

Singapore, Sweden, and the United Kingdom by signing formal agreements 

with the governments of these nations. 

S&T liaisons in Europe, the Americas, and Asia scout technological 

developments in the region with the aim of identifying promising homeland 

security research initiatives. S&T also sponsors annual academic grant 

competitions, which are open to the international community, and provide 

access to science and technology research in support of the DHS mission. 

Secret Service 

Investigations Division 

International Investigative Support 

The Secret Service is the lead federal law enforcement agency for 

counterfeiting investigations and credit card, financial wire transaction, 

telemarketing, telecommunications, and computer fraud investigations. The 

Secret Service also investigates cases of forgery, money laundering, and 

identity theft. Secret Service staff abroad support domestic investigations by 

working with local law enforcement to address international leads. They also 

provide instruction in investigative techniques at International Law 

Enforcement Academies, and advise local governments, banks, and 

commercial establishments on identifying counterfeit U.S. currency. 

The Secret Service’s 20 overseas regional offices operate with a total of 99 

personnel. Secret Service agents serve overseas for three years, with the 

option to extend their tour for an additional one to two years. 

International Protective Support 

The Secret Service protects present and former U.S. presidents, the vice 

president, and their families, as well as presidential and vice presidential 

candidates, their spouses, and official representatives of the United States 

performing special missions. It provides this protection both domestically and 

abroad. Secret Service agents plan and provide security for the international 

visits of their protectees, and investigate international threats against them. 

Secret Service agents in each of its international field offices balance 

protective functions with their investigative responsibilities. Secret Service 

field offices maintain liaison with counterpart law enforcement organizations 

worldwide to facilitate coordination during protectee visits. They also assist 

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in the security planning around international visits, and sometimes serve on 

security details abroad. 

Transportation Security Administration 

Two TSA units manage international activities, Office of Global Strategies 

and Federal Air Marshals Service. 

Office of Global Strategies 

Transportation Security Administration Representatives 

The Federal Aviation Administration first deployed TSA Representatives 

(TSAR) in 1990 in response to a congressional mandate following the 

bombing of PanAm flight 103 over Scotland. TSARs liaison with host 

government counterparts, assist in responding to international incidents 

affecting U.S. citizens such as mass evacuations, and assess host country 

transportation security needs. TSARs also assist in the security assessments 

of foreign airports and air carriers. 

TSARs are selected on the basis of their familiarity with the international civil 

aviation operating environment, knowledge of transportation security, and 

command of transportation laws and regulations. TSARs are deployed for 2­

year assignments with option to extend for two more years, a maximum of 

four years. TSA has 18 TSAR positions abroad with 16 support staff. These 

positions are distributed across 14 countries. 

Transportation Security Specialists 

Transportation Security Specialists further TSA’s mission of protecting civil 

aviation by conducting airport and air carrier inspections overseas. In 

conducting international airport and air carrier security assessments, TSA 

Transportation Security Specialists verify compliance with International Civil 

Aviation Organization security standards. In response to a congressional 

mandate, they will begin inspecting foreign air repair stations, as well. 

TSA Transportation Security Specialists operate out of five field offices, two 

of which are located overseas. TSA has 31 Transportation Security 

Specialists and support staff positions in Singapore and Frankfurt, Germany. 

Transportation Security Specialists stationed abroad have two-year tours of 

duty with the option to extend for two more years. 

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Federal Air Marshal Service 

Federal Air Marshal International Activities 

The Federal Air Marshal Service aims to identify and deter terrorist or other 

threats against U.S. air carriers, airports, passengers, and crews. Trained in 

investigative techniques, criminal and terrorist behavior recognition, firearms, 

aircraft specific tactics, and close quarters self-defense measures, air marshals 

are responsible for intervening in incidents that could potentially threaten the 

flying public. 

The Federal Air Marshal Service has negotiated a number of international 

agreements to enable it to provide security on the international flights of U.S. 

carriers. The Service provides assessments and training for other nations' air 

marshals programs, and participates in multilateral organizations that address 

air marshal-related security issues. The Federal Air Marshal Service has no 

permanent staff abroad. 

United States Citizenship and Immigration Services 

USCIS international programs and activities are managed by the Refugee, 

Asylum, and International Operations Directorate. 

Refugee, Asylum, and International Operations Directorate 

Adjudications and Benefit Processing 

USCIS staff abroad review and adjudicate citizenship and immigration 

benefits. They adjudicate immigrant visa petitions, perform naturalizations of 

military personnel, review U.S. citizen petitions to adopt foreign-born 

children, and reunite individuals with U.S.-based refugee and asylee family 

members. They also support domestic USCIS offices in making assessments 

about the legitimacy of asylum claims filed in the United States, and work to 

identify related trends in fraudulent activity. USCIS international efforts in 

these areas are supported through benefits application fees. 

About 200 USCIS staff abroad perform these functions. These staff are 

distributed across 27 international suboffices, each of which reports to one of 

three district office’s abroad. U.S. direct hire staff serve a maximum of five 

years overseas. Managerial staff are assigned to an initial 3-year tour 

followed by two possible 1-year extensions, whereas other field staff have 

initial 2-year tours of duty followed by three possible 1-year extensions, and 

another optional yearlong extension if operational needs require it. 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

Page 131 
Appendix D 

DHS International Programs 

Refugee Affairs 

USCIS also processes and adjudicates refugee petitions abroad. USCIS staff 

interview individuals seeking refugee status in the United States, review their 

applications, and make determinations about their eligibility. USCIS sends 

U.S.-based refugee corps staff and asylum officers overseas for this purpose 

on deployments that can, when combined, last as long as six months a year. 

Other USCIS staff abroad who primarily perform adjudication functions, also 

facilitate USCIS refugee processing efforts by coordinating with Department 

of State counterparts in embassies, refugee processing contractors, and host 

government officials. 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

Page 132 
Appendix E 

Major Contributors to This Report 

Douglas Ellice, Chief Inspector 

Justin H. Brown, Inspector (Team Leader) 

Ericka Kristine Odiña, Inspector 

Michelle Streit, Inspector 

Andrew Schmidt, Inspector 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

Page 133 
Appendix F 

Report Distribution 

Department of Homeland Security 

Secretary 

Deputy Secretary 

Chief of Staff 

Deputy Chief of Staff 

General Counsel 

Executive Secretary 

Director, GAO/OIG Liaison Office 

Assistant Secretary for Policy 

Assistant Secretary for International Affairs 

Commissioner, Customs and Border Protection 

Assistant Secretary for Immigration and Customs Enforcement 

Commandant, Coast Guard 

Director, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services 

Director, Secret Service 

Assistant Secretary for Transportation Security 

Director, Federal Emergency Management Agency 

Director, Federal Law Enforcement Training Center 

Under Secretary for Science and Technology 

Under Secretary for National Preparedness and Programs 

Director, US-VISIT Program Office 

Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs 

Assistant Secretary for Legislative and Intergovernmental Affairs 

Chief of Security 

CBP OIG Liaison 

ICE OIG Liaison 

Coast Guard OIG Liaison 

USCIS OIG Liaison 

Secret Service OIG Liaison 

TSA OIG Liaison 

FEMA OIG Liaison 

FLETC OIG Liaison 

S&T OIG Liaison 

US-VISIT Program Office OIG Liaison 

Management of DHS International Activities and Interests 

Page 134 
Additional Information and Copies 

To obtain additional copies of this report, call the Office of Inspector General 

(OIG) at (202) 254-4199, fax your request to (202) 254-4305, or visit the OIG web 

site at www.dhs.gov/oig. 

OIG Hotline 

To report alleged fraud, waste, abuse or mismanagement, or any other kind of 

criminal or noncriminal misconduct relative to department programs or 

operations: 

• Call our Hotline at 1-800-323-8603; 

• Fax the complaint directly to us at (202) 254-4292; 

• Email us at DHSOIGHOTLINE@dhs.gov; or 

•	 Write to us at: 

DHS Office of Inspector General/MAIL STOP 2600, Attention: 

Office of Investigations - Hotline, 245 Murray Drive, SW, Building 410, 

Washington, DC 20528. 

The OIG seeks to protect the identity of each writer and caller.