Defense Intelligence Agency
The joint military intelligence agency of the American armed forces, founded in 1961
Overview
The DIA was created in 1961 under Defense Secretary Robert McNamara to unify intelligence across the military services. It manages the defense attache system posted in embassies worldwide, produces assessments of foreign armed forces, and houses the National Military Intelligence Center. During the Cold War it provided an independent Pentagon check on CIA analysis, and after 2001 it deployed field teams to Iraq and Afghanistan. Its foundational estimates of adversary order of battle underpin American war planning. It also produces the daily defense intelligence briefings delivered to senior civilian and military leadership.
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