Office of Policy Coordination
Encyclopedia
The Office of Policy Coordination (OPC) was a United States
covert
psychological operations and paramilitary
action organization. Created as an independent office in 1948, it was merged with the Central Intelligence Agency
(CIA) in 1951.
OPC was created in 1948 under the United States National Security Council
document NSC 10/2. The OPC's directors included representatives of the State
and Defense
departments and the CIA. Though a unit of the CIA, the OPC Director reported to the State Department.
State Department official George F. Kennan
was the key figure behind OPC's creation.
The OPC's executive director
was Frank Wisner
, a former OSS
figure in Romania
and later an assistant secretary of state for refugee affairs.
The OPC grew rapidly during the Korean War
. In April 1951, US President Harry Truman established the Psychological Strategy Board
in order to coordinate all US psychological warfare
strategy.
In 1952, the office came under the direct control of the CIA and was merged with its Office of Special Operations to form the Directorate of Plans.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
covert
Covert operation
A covert operation is a military, intelligence or law enforcement operation that is carried clandestinely and, often, outside of official channels. Covert operations aim to fulfill their mission objectives without any parties knowing who sponsored or carried out the operation...
psychological operations and paramilitary
Paramilitary
A paramilitary is a force whose function and organization are similar to those of a professional military, but which is not considered part of a state's formal armed forces....
action organization. Created as an independent office in 1948, it was merged with the Central Intelligence Agency
Central Intelligence Agency
The Central Intelligence Agency is a civilian intelligence agency of the United States government. It is an executive agency and reports directly to the Director of National Intelligence, responsible for providing national security intelligence assessment to senior United States policymakers...
(CIA) in 1951.
OPC was created in 1948 under the United States National Security Council
United States National Security Council
The White House National Security Council in the United States is the principal forum used by the President of the United States for considering national security and foreign policy matters with his senior national security advisors and Cabinet officials and is part of the Executive Office of the...
document NSC 10/2. The OPC's directors included representatives of the State
United States Department of State
The United States Department of State , is the United States federal executive department responsible for international relations of the United States, equivalent to the foreign ministries of other countries...
and Defense
United States Department of Defense
The United States Department of Defense is the U.S...
departments and the CIA. Though a unit of the CIA, the OPC Director reported to the State Department.
State Department official George F. Kennan
George F. Kennan
George Frost Kennan was an American adviser, diplomat, political scientist and historian, best known as "the father of containment" and as a key figure in the emergence of the Cold War...
was the key figure behind OPC's creation.
The OPC's executive director
Executive director
Executive director is a term sometimes applied to the chief executive officer or managing director of an organization, company, or corporation. It is widely used in North American non-profit organizations, though in recent decades many U.S. nonprofits have adopted the title "President/CEO"...
was Frank Wisner
Frank Wisner
Frank Gardiner Wisner was head of Office of Strategic Services operations in southeastern Europe at the end of World War II, and the head of the Directorate of Plans of the Central Intelligence Agency during the 1950s....
, a former OSS
Office of Strategic Services
The Office of Strategic Services was a United States intelligence agency formed during World War II. It was the wartime intelligence agency, and it was a predecessor of the Central Intelligence Agency...
figure in Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
and later an assistant secretary of state for refugee affairs.
The OPC grew rapidly during the Korean War
Korean War
The Korean War was a conventional war between South Korea, supported by the United Nations, and North Korea, supported by the People's Republic of China , with military material aid from the Soviet Union...
. In April 1951, US President Harry Truman established the Psychological Strategy Board
Psychological Strategy Board
The Psychological Strategy Board was a committee of the United States executive formed to coordinate and plan for psychological operations. It was formed on April 4, 1951, during the Truman administration. The board was composed of the Under Secretary of State, the Deputy Secretary of Defense,...
in order to coordinate all US psychological warfare
Psychological warfare
Psychological warfare , or the basic aspects of modern psychological operations , have been known by many other names or terms, including Psy Ops, Political Warfare, “Hearts and Minds,” and Propaganda...
strategy.
In 1952, the office came under the direct control of the CIA and was merged with its Office of Special Operations to form the Directorate of Plans.
See also
- Operation MockingbirdOperation MockingbirdOperation Mockingbird was a secret Central Intelligence Agency campaign to influence foreign media beginning in the 1950s.The activities, extent and even the existence of the CIA project remain in dispute: the operation was first called Mockingbird in Deborah Davis' 1979 book, Katharine the Great:...
- National Clandestine ServiceNational Clandestine ServiceThe National Clandestine Service is one of the four main components of the Central Intelligence Agency...
- Carmel OffieCarmel OffieCarmel Offie worked for the U.S. State Department from the mid 1930s until he joined the Central Intelligence Agency CIA in 1947...
- Charles W. ThayerCharles W. ThayerCharles W. Thayer was an American diplomat and author. He was an expert on Soviet-American relations and headed the Voice of America.-Early years:...
Sources
- Peter Grosse, Operation Rollback (Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 2000)
- Wilson D. Miscamble, George F. Kennan and the Making of American Foreign Policy, 1947-1950 (Princeton University Press, 1992))
- Richard C.S. Trahair, Encyclopedia of Cold War Espionage, Spies, and Secret Operations (Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 2004)