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GW Law Library
Research Guides

National Security Law Resources

The purpose of this guide is to identify resources on national security law and related interdisciplinary topics.

Selected U.S. Government Web Sites

  • Central Intelligence Agency
    The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) is an independent US Government agency responsible for providing national security intelligence to senior US policymakers. The online library provides access to reports, publications, and related links.
  • Congress.gov
    Congress.gov is the official website for U.S. federal legislative information. The site provides access to accurate, timely, and complete legislative information for Members of Congress, legislative agencies, and the public. It is presented by the Library of Congress (LOC) using data from the Office of the Clerk of the U.S. House of Representatives, the Office of the Secretary of the Senate, the Government Publishing Office, Congressional Budget Office, and the LOC's Congressional Research Service.
  • Department of Defense
    The largest U.S. government agency, responsible for providing the military forces needed to deter war and to protect the nation's security. The site's news section provides access to various publications, special reports, speeches, and transcripts.
  • Department of Homeland Security
    Established by the 2002 Homeland Security Act, DHS' mission is "to ensure a homeland that is safe, secure, and resilient against terrorism and other hazards." The site's news section provides access to publications, speeches, and testimony. Laws and regulations are found in the "About DHS" section.
  • Department of Justice
    Responsible for enforcing U.S. law and ensuring public safety from both domestic and foreign threats. The site's resources section provides access to publications, case highlights and some legislative histories.
  • Department of State
    Responsible for advising the president on foreign policy and diplomacy, State Department activities also involve national security. Major publications, including Foreign Relations of the United States, Country Reports on Terrorism, Narcotics Control Strategy Report, and other reports are available via the Department Reports and Publications page.
  • Department of the Treasury
    The Treasury Department performs a critical and far-reaching role in enhancing national security by implementing economic sanctions against foreign threats to the U.S., identifying and targeting the financial support networks of national security threats, and improving the safeguards of our financial systems.
  • FDsys (Federal Digital System)
    Offers access to Congressional reports, committee prints, executive agency documents in addition to official PDF versions of Senate Treaty Documents. (Note: FDsys will eventually be replaced by Govinfo.gov, GPO's new website, in late 2018.)
  • FOIA.gov
    A government-wide portal for the Freedom of Information Act that was developed as part of the Department of Justice’s Open Government plan.
  • Foreign Military Studies Office
    The U.S. Army's Office of Foreign Military Studies conducts "unclassified research of foreign perspectives of defense and security issues that are understudied or unconsidered." Some of the major defense and security issues covered are Border Security, Cyber Security, Energy Security, Drugs/Arms/Human Trafficking, Foreign Instability, Information Operations/Warfare, and Terrorism.
  • National Security Agency
    Established by order of President Truman in 1952, the NSA "collects, processes, and disseminates intelligence information from foreign electronic signals for national foreign intelligence and counterintelligence purposes and to support military operations." The site's public information tab provides declassified documents arranged by topic as well as an index.
  • National Security Council
    Established by the National Security Act of 1947, the Council's main function is to advise and assist the President on national security and foreign policies. Resources available in the Briefing Room section include Executive Orders, Presidential Memoranda, Proclamations, and Reports to Congress. 
  • Office of the Director of National Intelligence
    The Director of National Intelligence (DNI) serves as the head of the Intelligence Community (IC), overseeing and directing the implementation of the National Intelligence Program and acting as the principal advisor to the President, the National Security Council, and the Homeland Security Council for intelligence matters related to the national security. Resources available in the News + Information section include speeches, interviews, reports, Congressional testimony, and other publications. Links to the Office's various centers, including the Office of the National Counterintelligence Executive, are provided.
  • National Counterintelligence and Security Center
    The NCSC is part of the Office of the Director of National Intelligence and is staffed by senior counterintelligence (CI) and other specialists from across the national intelligence and security communities. E.O. 12333, as amended, is available on the site.

Legal Research Web Sites

  • Electronic Information System for International Law (E.I.S.I.L.)
    Arranged by subject categories of international law, this web site provides references to relevant treaties for each subject. The site also provides references to official sources for the text of the treaty, as well as links to full-text sources available on the Internet. Version 2.0 forthcoming.