Interagency Working Group (IWG)

Press Briefing: CIA Declassifies Operational Materials As a Result of New Disclosure Policy under Nazi War Crimes Disclosure Act

Press Release
May 31, 2006

Press Briefing: CIA Declassifies Operational Materials As a Result of New Disclosure Policy under Nazi War Crimes Disclosure Act

What: The interagency group (IWG) responsible for locating, declassifying, and releasing U.S. records related to Nazi and Japanese war crimes and criminals will hold a briefing to discuss the recent release of CIA operational records. The IWG will describe how this record declassification differs from previous CIA record releases, and historians will explore the implications for future research. The records have been declassified under the Nazi War Crimes Disclosure Act of 1998 and the Japanese Imperial Government Disclosure Act of 2000 and are now open to the public at the National Archives, College Park, Maryland.

Who: Press will be briefed by Archivist of the United States Allen Weinstein and a CIA representative, with additional comments by:

  • Senator Mike DeWine of Ohio
  • Representative Carolyn Maloney of New York
  • IWG Public Members Elizabeth Holtzman, Thomas Baer, and Richard Ben-Veniste.

Historical perspectives will be presented by IWG historians: Norman J.W. Goda, Richard Breitman, Timothy Naftali, and Robert Wolfe. Following the briefing, the historians will be available for comment.

When: Tuesday, June 6, 9:00 A.M.
Pre-set time for television/radio is 8:30 A.M.

Where: Room 105, National Archives Building
700 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW

Since 1999, the IWG has overseen the identification, declassification, and release of roughly 8 million pages of U.S. Government records related to war criminals and crimes committed by the Nazi and Japanese Imperial Governments during World War II. The IWG is composed of representatives from eight federal agencies and three public members. In April 2004 the group published U.S. Intelligence and the Nazis, a collection of studies based on newly released documentation. Two additional volumes, Researching Japanese War Crimes: Introductory Essays and an accompanying electronic Guide to Japanese War Crimes Records are forthcoming. The IWG web site is: http://www.archives.gov/iwg/.

Press Contacts:
Susan Cooper, National Archives, 202-357-5300

###

06-110

Top