Combating Proliferation of Weapons of Mass Destruction

General, and such other members as the President may designate. The function of theCommittee is to coordinate and direct the activities of the government to combat“transnational threats,” which the statute defines as “any transnational activity (includinginternational terrorism, narcotics trafficking, the proliferation of weapons of massdestruction and the delivery systems for such weapons, and organized crime) thatthreatens the national security.” (emphasis added) or any individual engaged in suchactivities.In carrying out its function, the Committee is directed to:• identify transnational threats, develop strategies to enable the United Statesto respond to these threats, and monitor their implementation;• assist in the resolution of operational and policy differences betweenagencies in their responses to transnational threats;• develop policies and procedures to ensure the effective sharing ofinformation about transnational threats among the departments andagencies, including the Intelligence Community and law-enforcementagencies; and• develop guidelines to improve coordination between the IntelligenceCommunity and federal law-enforcement agencies outside the UnitedStates with respect to these threats.There is no information in the public domain to suggest that the Committee onTransnational Threats has organized or met. The Committee’s function and membership,however, appear to parallel the broad authority given to the NSC Principals Committeeunder PDD/NSC-2.NSC Committee on Proliferation. The same Congress that established the NSCCommittee on Transnational Threats also established, but by different legislation (P.L. 104-201), the NSC Committee on Proliferation. The Proliferation Committee has a similar,though more detailed, mandate with regard to proliferation matters, but there are somedifferences between the two committees. The “National Coordinator for NonproliferationMatters,” established by the same legislation, chairs the Proliferation Committee, while thePresident’s National Security Advisor chairs the Transnational Threats Committee. TheProliferation Committee has a wider membership than the Transnational ThreatsCommittee (adding the Secretaries of the Treasury, Energy, and Commerce and theAdministrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency), and a sunset provision forSeptember 30, 1999. The NSC Proliferation Committee was to review and coordinatefederal programs, policies, and directives relating to proliferation, “including mattersrelating to terrorism and international organized crime,” and to recommend to thePresident through the NSC:12