|
AFIO/ME Meeting
April 15, 2023 – 2:00 p.m. KENNEBUNK HIGH SCHOOL 89 Fletcher St, Kennebunk, ME
(Directions below) Space – The Race for the Final Frontier
The next public meeting of the Association of Former Intelligence Officers will be held at Kennebunk High School’s Economos Lecture Hall at 88 Fletcher Street in Kennebunk on Saturday, April 15th, at 2:00 p.m.
The guest speaker, John Doughty, is currently Chief Sputnik’s launch in 1957 ignited the space race with the U.S. and Soviet Union. Today, a new arms race is brewing in orbit with space becoming more affordable. As a result, the thriving space industry now includes dozens of companies and countries exploring ways to utilize space. Meanwhile, China is challenging our primacy in space, and the last frontier has become more militarized with some countries deploying counter-space systems. Given the importance of space to the U.S. economy and national security, the Pentagon has bolstered spending directed toward space-based systems. Mr. Doughty will discuss the commercial and security aspects of the new space race as well as some of the major space exploration programs. The latest in a series of public affairs discussions, the AFIO meeting is open to the public, and will begin at 2:00 p.m. in the Economos Lecture Hall at Kennebunk High School, 88 Fletcher Street. A question-and-answer period will follow the presentation. _______________________________________
 |
Investment Officer for R.M. Davis in Portland, Maine. He leads his firms research efforts and specializes in energy, economics, and geopolitics, with a close eye on economic and market trends.AFIO/ME Meeting
January 21, 2023
2:00 p.m.
Brick Store Museum Program Center
4 Dane Street, Kennebunk, ME
“The Continuing Threat of Jihadi Terrorism to USA?”
The increasing threat of terrorism in our country will be the topic of the January 21st
meeting of the Maine Chapter of the Association of Former
Intelligence Officers as presented by
Daveed Gartenstein-Ross.
Over the past decade, the terrorist threat has definitely
evolved. National security professionals voice increasing
concerns about polarization and domestic extremist
movements, while evidence ranging from Afghanistan to Africa suggests that the
threat of jihadism that occupied the U.S. for more than two decades is anything but
dead. Daveed Gartenstein-Ross, an internationally recognized expert on jihadist
terrorism, was also the author of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s 2019
Strategic Framework for Countering Terrorism and Targeted Violence, an acclaimed
document that reoriented the Department’s focus to recognition of the rising
domestic terrorist threat. He will provide a comprehensive account of current
terrorist threats and what we should do to address them.
Dr. Gartenstein-Ross has special expertise on Al Qaeda, domestic extremism, the
Islamic State, Jihadism, Libya, and Tunisia. He has crafted strategic plans for
counter terrorism, and he has given extensive training and lectures both in the U.S.
and across the globe in addition to authoring many books and articles.
The January 21st session is the latest in a series of discussions relating to the
importance of intelligence in current public affairs. The AFIO meeting is open to the
public and will begin at 2 p.m. at the Brick Store Museum Program Center, which is
behind the Museum at 4 Dane Street, Kennebunk. A question period will follow the
January 2023 AFIO Meeting
AFIO/ME Meeting
November 19, 2022, 2 p.m.
Brick Store Museum Program Center
4 Dane Street, Kennebunk, ME
The Caucasus and Central Asia: Russia’s Southern Front
Our next meeting of AFIO (Association of Former Intelligence Officers) will be on Saturday, November 19th,
with Ambassador (RET) Robert Cekuta. He will address the topic of Russia’s ambitions of regaining the former Soviet Union intermingled with China, Iran, and Turkey also having a special focus on the Caucasus and Central Asia.
Ambassador Cekuta has an extensive background as a top-level U.S. diplomat including ambassador to Azerbaijan; and overseas postings that have taken him to embassies in Berlin, Tokyo, Albania, Yemen, Baghdad, Kabul, and Vienna. In the past he has been deeply involved with energy resources, sanctions, and security issues. His extensive efforts have resulted in a variety of prestigious awards.
For his presentation Ambassador Cekuta will discuss the Russian interests in regaining this region with rich resources of oil, gas, and uranium while some countries want to keep the independence they gained 30 years ago. China, Iran and Turkey have special interests in Central Asia along with threats of terrorism, religious extremism, and drug trafficking. Ambassador Cekuta will look at this evolving situation in this strategic part of the world and what the U.S. needs to do to advance our geostrategic interests there.
This the latest is a series of discussions relating to the importance of Intelligence in current public affairs. The AFIO meeting is open to the public and will begin at 2:00 p.m. at the Brick Store Museum Program Center, which is behind the Museum at 4 Dane Street, Kennebunk, Maine. A question-and-answer period will follow the presentation.
AFIO/ME Meeting
September 17, 2022, 2 p.m.
Kennebunkport Historical Society
The Town House School
135 North Street, Kennebunkport, ME
KENNEBUNK — Rollie Flynn, a retired operations officer and senior executive at the CIA, will examine the past and future missions of the intelligence agency at the September 17th meeting of the Association of Former Intelligence Officers (AFIO), Maine Chapter.
Flynn’s presentation will include insights from her 30-year career as an undercover case officer, chief of station and senior leadership of CIA global counterterrorism operations.
Her presentation will explore what’s new and what’s old in intelligence operations. She will explain how our Intelligence priorities and tradecraft have changed two decades into the 21st Century.
Topics are expected to include discussion of new threats from both traditional and non-traditional adversaries; the potential for politicization of CIA activities; increased scrutiny by Congress and the media; and ethical dilemmas inherent to all intelligence operations.
In retirement, Flynn has taught graduate courses at Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service and Fordham University’s Graduate School of Business. She is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, an Adjunct Staff member at Rand Corporation, a member of the advisory board of the International Spy Museum, and a has appeared on NBC, CNN, and other media outlets as an expert on intelligence matters and terrorism.
Attention: Location for this month only:
This is the latest in a series of discussions relating to the importance of intelligence in current public affairs. The AFIO meeting is open to the public, and will begin at 2 p.m. at the Town House School, 135 North Street, in Kennebunkport, Maine. A question-and-answer period will follow the presentation.
AFIO Meeting, April 16, 2022
Brick Store Museum Program Center, Kennebunk
2:00 p.m.
Modernizing the Army, Its Intelligence, and Comments on the Ukraine War
Modernization of the Army and Army Intelligence will be the focus of the April 16, 2022, meeting of the Maine Chapter of the Association of Former Intelligence Officers. This topic will be followed by comments on the Russian and Ukraine conflict.
The speaker, Major General Gregg Potter (Ret), has had more than 32 years’ experience with the Military and Intelligence Communities, including command and director of intelligence positions at the tactical, operational and strategic level. Some of his assignments have included Deputy Chief of Staff for Intelligence with the International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan, Vice Director of Intelligence at the Defense Intelligence Agency at the Pentagon, Commanding General Intelligence Center for Excellence at Fort Huachuca, AZ., the Joint Staff J2, and European Command J2. His final active duty assignment was the Director of Signals Intelligence for the National Security Agency.
Major General Potter earned a bachelor’s degree in Forestry from the University of Vermont and a master’s degree in Strategy from the U.S. Army War College.
Major General Potter is currently employed by Northrup Grumman as Corporate Lead Executive helping the Army to grow and supporting the Army customer relations team with his leadership, intelligence, and cyber experience.
The AFIO meeting is open to the public and will begin at 2 p.m. at the Program Center of the Brick Store Museum, 4 Dane Street, Kennebunk, Maine 04043. A Question and Answer period will follow the presentation.
Major General Gregg Potter
Strengths and Vulnerabilities of Islands off China’s Eastern Coast” with a focus on Taiwan,
March 19, 2022 2:00 p.m.
Brick Store Museum Program Center
4 Dane Street, Kennebunk, ME 04043
The speaker will be active duty Vice Admiral William Merz. VADM Merz is a graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy, a Masters Degree from Catholic University and has completed the MIT Seminar XXI program. He is currently assigned to the Pentagon as Deputy Chief of Naval Operations for Operations, Plans and Strategy which followed ten overseas deployments most in command positions. These commands include nuclear deep-sea vessel (DSV) ”NR-1”, command of the attack submarine USS Memphis, major command of Submarine development Squadron 12 and was Commander of U.S. 7th Fleet. The 7th Fleet is based out of Japan and his command was until last summer. Most of these command’s area of operations focused on Western Pacific from Japan southward to and including the Philippines.
VADM Merz understands that the Maine Chapter’s forum is an unclassified environment and is part of continuing discussions relating to the importance of having an effective Intelligence Community as USA’s first line of defense; therefore, his presentation will be based upon statements that have been, or about to be released to the general public. In addition to his far Pacific experiences, his command tours included Bahrain. We anticipate VADM Merz’s observations, analysis and opinions will also include China’s intent to its off shore islands and, time allowing, Russia’s impact on Ukraine and NATO.
The AFIO meeting is open to the public and will begin at 2 PM at the Program Center of the Brick Store Museum, 4 Dane Street, Kennebunk, Maine 04043. A Question and Answer period will follow the presentation.
Eastern Europe:
Thirty Years After the Fall of the Soviet Union
November 20, 2021, 2:00 p.m.
Brick Store Museum Program Center
4 Dane Street, Kennebunk, ME 04043
“Eastern Europe: Thirty Years After the Fall of the Soviet Union” is the topic of the November 20, 2021 meeting of the Association of Former Intelligence Officers (AFIO), Maine Chapter.
The speaker will be Colonel (RET) William Hall. He was an Intelligence Officer in the U.S. Air Force and spent nearly 18 years overseas in Asia and Europe. He will discuss the Berlin Wall being torn down and the Soviet Union dissolving and what these actions had upon democratic capitalism under American leadership–which seemed to be the global future. He will include his analysis on Germany’s move toward reunification and on the former eastern European Soviet Republics and satellites that were developing in a new international environment. His observations will include what American policymakers expected, what actually happened, and where we are we now.
Colonel Hall is the president of the World Affairs Council of Maine and is a graduate of Princeton University with a bachelor’s degree in politics and a master’s degree in foreign affairs from University of Virginia.
This the latest is a series of discussions relating to the importance of Intelligence in current public affairs. The AFIO meeting is open to the public, and will begin at 2:00 p.m. at the Program Center of the Brick Store Museum, 4 Dane Street, Kennebunk, Maine. A question and answer period will follow the presentation.
AFIO/ME
MEETING
June 20th, 2020
Thomas Willemain will be giving a presentation on the National Security Agency (NSA).
AFIO/ME
MEETING
May 16, 2020
Louis Sell is speaking on Bosnia and Kosovo
AFIO/ME
MEETING
April 2020
Cancelled, join us in May for Louis Sell is speaking on Bosnia and Kosovo
AFIO/ME
MEETING
March 21, 2020
Cancelled. Please join us 18 April 2020 where our topic will be the NSA
AFIO/ME
MEETING
FEBRUARY 15, 2020
Program Center, Brick Store Museum
4 Dane Street, Kennebunk, ME
2:00 p.m.
UNE PROFESSOR TO FOCUS ON ISLAM-WEST RELATIONSHIP
KENNEBUNK – Anouar Majid, Vice President for Global Affairs at the University of New England, will discuss “Islam and the West in a Turbulent World” at the Feb 15 open meeting of the Association of Former Intelligence Officers (AFIO), Maine chapter.
Born in Tangier, Morocco, Majid is the author of five critically acclaimed books on Islam and the West. He has written for The Washington Post, The Chronicle of Higher Education, The New York Times, and other international publications.
His talk will cover topics such as the fast-changing dynamics of the relationship between Islam and the non-Muslim West, and whether there are new forces that are reshaping that relationship.
The Feb. 15 session is the latest in a series of discussions relating to the importance of intelligence in current public affairs. The AFIO meeting is open to the public, and will begin at 2 p.m. at the Program Center of the Brick Store Museum, 4 Dane St., Kennebunk. A question period will follow the presentation.
AFIO/ME Meeting
January 18, 2020
Program Center, Brick Store Museum
4 Dane Street, Kennebunk, ME
2:00 p.m.
Cancelled, look for for the February speaker announcement coming soon.
October 19, 2019
Program Center, Brick Store Museum
4 Dane Street, Kennebunk, ME
2:00 p.m.
KENNBUNK — Former U.S. Ambassador to Azerbaijan Robert 
Cekuta will explore “Oil, Gas, Russia, Iran and America” at the Oct. 19 public meeting of the Association of Former Intelligence Officers (AFIO), Maine Chapter.
The only country in the world to border both Russia and Iran, Azerbaijan is important to the United States in terms of oil and natural gas for European and global energy security, as a means for NATO access to Afghanistan as well as for commerce between Europe, China and South Asia. Current policy concerns in the region for the U.S. include China’s ambitious Belt and Road Initiative, the changes in Turkey’s foreign relations, transnational criminal activity and terrorism.
This is the latest in a series of discussions relating to the importance of Intelligence in current public affairs. The AFIO meeting is open to the public, and will begin at 2 p.m. at the Program Center of the Brick Store Museum, 4 Dane St., Kennebunk. A question period will follow the presentation.
AFIO/ME Meeting
September 21, 2019
Program Center, Brick Store Museum
4 Dane Street, Kennebunk, ME
2:00 p.m.
KENNEBUNK — “Turkey: Ally No More,” is the topic of Sept. 21 meeting of the Association of Former Intelligence Officers (AFIO), Maine Chapter.
The speaker will be former CIA officer Clare Lopez, vice president for research and analysis at the Center for Security Policy, a conservative Washington think tank. Lopez has authored a book highly critical of Turkey’s president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, as hostile toward the vital interests of the United States, NATO and other allies like Israel and the Kurds.
This is the latest in a series of discussions relating to the importance of intelligence in current public affairs. The AFIO meeting is open to the public, and will begin at 2 p.m. at the Program Center of the Brick Store Museum, 4 Dane St., Kennebunk. A question period will follow the presentation.
AFIO/ME Meeting
June 15, 2019
Program Center, Brick Store Museum
4 Dane Street, Kennebunk, ME
2:00 p.m.
VETERAN CIA LEADER TO DISCUSS
HISTORY OF ASSASSINATIONS
KENNEBUNK – CIA operations veteran David P. Hunt will discuss “From Russia With Love,” a history of assassinations from the 16th Century to today, at the June 15 public meeting of the Association of Former Intelligence Officers (AFIO) Maine Chapter.
Hunt served 32 years in the CIA, including tours in Italy, Vietnam, Somalia, Norway, France, and New York City. He served twice as Deputy Chief of Station (Norway and France) and twice as Chief of Station (Somalia and New York City). A Colby College graduate, he is an expert in Soviet operations, European affairs, and counterintelligence. Hunt holds the Donovan Award for Excellence, as well as the CIA’s Distinguished Intelligence Medal, its highest award.
This is the latest in a series of discussions relating to the importance of intelligence in current public affairs. The AFIO meeting is open to the public, and will begin at 2 p.m. at the Program Center of the Brick Store Museum, 4 Dane St., Kennebunk. A question period will follow the presentation.
AFIO MEETING CANCELED
KENNEBUNK — Spring is here but our speaker isn’t.
Despite numerous frustrating near-misses, we have been unable to secure a speaker for our planned April 20 meeting, which is now canceled. Recruitment efforts continue to secure an appropriate speaker for our May 18 gathering. As always, suggestions as to candidates are welcome.
Any future announcements regarding AFIO/Maine activities will be published via the usual channels.
AFIO/ME Meeting
March 16, 2019
Program Center, Brick Store Museum
4 Dane Street, Kennebunk, ME
2:00 p.m.
KENNEBUNK — Former Ambassador Charles Dunbar retired from senior posts at the State Department and United Nations, will discuss current U.S. policy challenges in Afghanistan at the March meeting of the Association of Former Intelligence Officers (AFIO), Maine Chapter.
The presentation, “Afghanistan: Bad If We Stay; Worse If We Leave,” is open to the public and will begin at 2 p.m. March 16 at the Brick Store Museum Program Center, 4 Dane St, Kennebunk. A question and answer period will follow the speech.
Dunbar spent 32 years with the State Department, including as charge d’affaires in Kabul, as well as ambassador postings in Yemen and Qatar, and assignments in Iran, Afghanistan, Morocco, Algeria and Mauritania. He served two years as UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan’s Special Representative in Western Sahara, and has taught at Simmons College, Boston University and Midcoast Senior College in Brunswick.
AFIO/ME Meeting
February 16, 2019
Program Center, Brick Store Museum
4 Dane Street, Kennebunk, ME
2:00 p.m.
AFIO: “It Wasn’t In
The Job Description”
KENNEBUNK — “It Wasn’t in the Job Description” is the title of the presentation at the Feb.16 public meeting of the Association of Former Intelligence Officers (AFIO), Maine chapter.
The speaker, former U.S. Air Force intelligence officer William Hall, served as the U.S. defense attaché in Bulgaria in the late ‘90s when fighting broke out over Kosovo’s bid for independence from Serbia. He will share insights from his wide experience in one of the lesser-known fields of intelligence — military diplomats.
Hall will discuss some of the more unusual challenges of attache work, including how to respond when an armed U.S. missile accidentally drops onto a friendly nation, and how to diplomatically navigate a vodka-soaked foreign bureaucracy.
Hall retired as a colonel after a 30-year career that included stints in the Balkans, Vietnam, Korea, the Philippines, Germany, Greece, Turkey, and northern Iraq. A resident of Peaks Island, Hall is vice-president of the World Affairs Council of Maine.
The latest in a series of public affairs discussions, the AFIO meeting is open to the public, and will begin at 2 p.m. at the Program Center of the Brick Store Museum, 4 Dane St., Kennebunk. A question period will follow the presentation.
AFIO/ME Meeting
19 January, 2018, 2 p.m.
Program Center, Brick Store Museum
4 Dane Street, Kennebunk, ME
EXPERT TO PROBE SINO-U.S. FUTURE:
MARKET RACE OR ARMED CONFLICT?
KENNEBUNK –A veteran scholar, researcher and analyst 
of global affairs will examine deteriorating China-U.S. relations at the Jan. 19 meeting of the Association of Former Intelligence Officers, Maine Chapter.
John Doughty will discuss tensions building on the trade front, China’s military expansion into the South China Sea, and key events in Chinese history that may provide clues to future developments in his talk, “Sino-U.S. Relations: Global Competitors or Inevitable Armed Conflict?”
Doughty, vice-president of R.M. Davis in Portland, was formerly a senior financial analyst at Bath Iron Works, is a trustee of the Maine Historical Society and currently serves on the boards of directors at World Affairs Council of Maine, and the Camden Conference.
This is the latest in a series of discussions relating to the importance of intelligence in current public affairs. The AFIO meeting is open to the public, and will begin at 2 p.m. at the Program Center of the Brick Store Museum, 4 Dane St., Kennebunk. A question period will follow the presentation.
AFIO/ME Meeting
November 17, 2018, 2 p.m.
Program Center, Brick Store Museum
4 Dane Street, Kennebunk, ME
Cancelled. Look for out January Posting
AFIO/ME Meeting
October 20, 2018, 2 p.m.
Program Center, Brick Store Museum
4 Dane Street, Kennebunk, ME
AFIO SPEAKER TO DISCUSS
CRISIS IN VENEZUELA
KENNEBUNK – The crisis in Venezuela and its impact on U.S. policy will be examined by a Heritage Foundation Latin America expert at a public discussion Oct. 20, sponsored by the Association of Former Intelligence Officers (AFIO), Maine Chapter.
Ana Rosa Quintana, the foundation’s leading expert on Latin America, has authored numerous policy studies of Cuba, Venezuela, and Central America. In addition to writing policy papers, Quintana’s articles have appeared in Real Clear World, The National Interest, and The Federalist, among others. Prior to joining Heritage, she held positions at the Defense Intelligence Agency and at the U.S. Agency for International Development, where she worked on civilian-military cooperation.
She will discuss Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro’s rise to power, whch critics say has turned Venezuela into a failing dictatorship, and why U.S. leadership and regional cooperation is needed to reverse Venezuela’s imminent collapse.
This is the latest in a series of discussions relating to the importance of intelligence in current public affairs. The AFIO meeting is open to the public, and will begin at 2 p.m. at the Program Center of the Brick Store Museum, 4 Dane St., Kennebunk. A question period will follow the presentation.
AFIO/ME Meeting
September 15, 2018, 2 p.m.
Program Center, Brick Store Museum
4 Dane Street, Kennebunk, ME
David Shedd “ Intelligence Challenges in a Volatile World”
Rescheduled to 17 November
June 16, 2018, 2 p.m.
Program Center, Brick Store Museum
4 Dane Street, Kennebunk, ME
Troubled Waters Ahead?
KENNEBUNK — Rollie Flynn, a retired operations officer and senior executive at the CIA, will examine the past and future missions of the intelligence agency at the June 16 meeting of the Association of Former Intelligence Officers (AFIO), Maine Chapter.Flynn’s presentation will include insights from her 30-year
career as an undercover case officer, chief of station and senior leadership of CIA global counterterrorism operations.
Her presentation will explore the evolution of the CIA’s mission and activities from its inception in 1947, through the turbulent response to the 9/11 attacks and the creation of the Directorate of National Intelligence (DNI).
Topics are expected to include discussion of new threats from both traditional and non-traditional adversaries; the potential for politicization of CIA activities; increased scrutiny by Congress and the media; and ethical dilemmas inherent to all intelligence operations.
In retirement, Flynn has taught graduate courses at Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service and Fordham University’s Graduate School of Business. She is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, an Adjunct Staff member at Rand Corporation, a member of the advisory board of the International Spy Museum, and a has appeared on NBC, CNN, and other media outlets as an expert on intelligence matters and terrorism.
This is the latest in a series of discussions relating to the importance of intelligence in current public affairs. The AFIO meeting is open to the public, and will begin at 2 p.m. at the Program Center of the Brick Store Museum, 4 Dane St., Kennebunk. A question period will follow the presentation.
AFIO/ME Meeting
May 19, 2018, 2 p.m.
Program Center, Brick Store Museum
4 Dane Street, Kennebunk, ME
KENNEBUNK – Veteran diplomat Ronald E. Neumann, president of the American Academy of Diplomacy, will discuss U.S.-Afghanistan issues at the May 19 public meeting of the Association of Former Intelligence Officers (AFIO), Maine Chapter.
Formerly a Deputy Assistant Secretary of State, Neumann served as ambassador to Algeria, Bahrain and finally to Afghanistan. A career member of the Senior Foreign Service, he also served in Baghdad with the Coalition Provisional Authority and then as Embassy Baghdad’s liaison with the Multinational Command, where he was deeply involved in coordinating the political aspect of military actions.
Neumann is the author of a memoir, Three Embassies, Four Wars: a personal memoir (2017) and The Other War: Winning and Losing in Afghanistan (Potomac Press, 2009), a book on his time in Afghanistan. He has returned to Afghanistan repeatedly and is the author of a number of monographs, articles, and editorials.
His presentation is expected to explore a variety of topics, such as current U.S. policy goals and strategies in Afghanistan, risks, timelines, the roles of Al-Qaeda and Islamic State, and the consequences of failure.
This is the latest in a series of discussions relating to the importance of intelligence in current public affairs. The AFIO meeting is open to the public, and will begin at 2 p.m. at the Program Center of the Brick Store Museum, 4 Dane St., Kennebunk. A question period will follow the presentation.
AFIO/ME Meeting
April 21, 2018, 2 p.m.
Program Center, Brick Store Museum
4 Dane Street, Kennebunk, ME
Speaker is Andrew Wilson, U.S. Naval War College, updating us on two Asia-Pacific Areas: China in the South China Sea and the other subject will be North Korea.
AFIO/ME Meeting
March 17, 2018, 2 p.m.
Program Center, Brick Store Museum
4 Dane Street, Kennebunk, ME
VETERAN CIA LEADER TO DISCUSS CURRENT INTEL ISSUES
KENNEBUNK – CIA operations veteran David P. Hunt will discuss “Intelligence in Flux, from the Cold War to the Present” at the March 17 public meeting of the Association of Former Intelligence Officers (AFIO) Maine Chapter.
Hunt served 32 years in the CIA, including tours in Italy, Vietnam, Somalia, Norway, France, and New York City. He served twice as Deputy Chief of Station (Norway and France) and twice as Chief of Station (Somalia and New York City). A Colby College graduate, he is an expert in Soviet operations, European affairs, and counterintelligence. Hunt holds the Donovan Award for Excellence, as well as the CIA’s Distinguished Intelligence Medal, its highest award.
This is the latest in a series of discussions relating to the importance of intelligence in current public affairs. The AFIO meeting is open to the public, and will begin at 2 p.m. at the Program Center of the Brick Store Museum, 4 Dane St., Kennebunk. A question period will follow the presentation.
September 16, 2017, 2:00 p.m.
Brick Store Museum Program Center
4 Dane Street, Kennebunk, ME
GAY FORMER SPY TO SPEAK September 16KENNEBUNK – An openly gay former CIA operative and novelist will address “CIA Tradecraft: Honeypot, Rabbit Bait” and his undercover role as an international flight attendant at the Sept. 16 public meeting of the Association of Former Intelligence Officers (AFIO), Maine Chapter.
Brian Randall, author of the fact-based spy thriller, Demaris Protocol, is expected to discuss his involuntary recruitment, CIA training and counterintelligence assignments including work in Munich, Dubrovnick, Mogadishu, Cairo, Bahrain, Paris, and Frankfurt under the special challenges of service in an agency whose policies at the time banned homosexuals.
Raised in a fundamental Baptist environment in the deep South, Randall is an openly gay graduate of Liberty University, founded by the Reverend Jerry Falwell. His novel draws upon his 10 years in Washington, DC and the unusual circumstances of his coming out. In 1992-93, he was involuntarily targeted and recruited as a civilian asset for the CIA at a time of the strictest ban on same-sex sexual orientation.
He and his partner of fourteen years are avid boaters and live with their German Shepherd, Aspen, in Portland.
The latest in a series of public affairs discussions, the AFIO meeting is open to the public, and will begin at 2 p.m. at the Program Center of the Brick Store Museum, 4 Dane St., Kennebunk. A question period will follow the presentation.
June 17th Meeting
Charles Cogan 37 years CIA (ret) speaking on “Saudi Arabia: Succession and Strategy”
May 20th Meeting
May 20, 2017, 2:00 p.m.
Brick Store Museum Program Center
4 Dane Street, Kennebunk, MEFORMER SPY CHIEF TO SPEAK
A former chief of CIA spies will address “Challenges Ahead for CIA – Technology andCountering Terrorism,” as the subject of the May 20 public meeting of the Association of Former Intelligence Officers (AFIO), Maine Chapter.
The talk will be presented by retired CIA executive Thomas Twetten, who served for three years as Deputy Director of Operations (DDO), the chief of the agency’s worldwide clandestine services. His topics are expected to include covert action, counter intelligence, the challenges of supplying effective technical support for officers in the field, and the special challenges of collecting intelligence on terrorist groups like Al Qaeda and Islamic State.
Twetten joined the CIA in 1961 after serving in the Army and obtaining a graduate degree in International Affairs from Columbia University. His career took him to West Africa, Afghanistan and elsewhere before returning to CIA headquarters in 1982, where he headed the technical support office and the Near East Division before being promoted to the operations directorate.
He retired in 1995, moving to Vermont, where he is a book-binder and seller of antique books specializing in travel and scholarly works on Africa, the Middle East and China
The latest in a series of public affairs discussions, the AFIO meeting is open to the public, and will begin at 2 p.m. at the Program Center of the Brick Store Museum, 4 Dane St., Kennebunk. A question period will follow the presentation.
AFIO (Maine) Meeting
Kennebunk, ME
2:00 p.m.
KENNEBUNK – Veteran CIA clandestine operative Gerry Gossens will discuss the chances of peace in the Middle East at the April 22 public meeting of the Association of Former Intelligence Officers (AFIO) Maine Chapter.
Gossens, a former Central Intelligence Agency station chief in six different countries, will review the current geopolitical landscape from Iraq to the Democratic Republic of the Congo. A graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy at Annapolis, Gossens was commissioned into the U.S. Air Force where he served as a pilot and intelligence officer in the Strategic Air Command. Recruited into the CIA Clandestine Service, he served in Beirut, Congo, Guinea, Tunisia, Zambia, South Africa and Paris.
In retirement he moved to Vermont, where he entered politics and served two terms in the House of Representatives and two terms in the state Senate.
The latest in a series of public affairs discussions, the AFIO meeting is open to the public, and will begin at 2 p.m. at the Program Center of the Brick Store Museum, 4 Dane St., Kennebunk. A question period will follow the presentation.
March 18 Meeting
KENNEBUNK – Dr. Andrew S. Erickson, professor of strategy at the U.S. Naval War College China Maritime Studies Institute, will be the featured speaker at the March 18 meeting of the Association of Former Intelligence Officers (AFIO) Maine Chapter.
Dr. Erickson’s talk, “China’s Maritime Gray Zone Operations,” will offer cutting-edge research on the geopolitical strategy and military tactics employed by China in the South China Sea, where Beijing has deployed the world’s largest blue water coast guard and maritime militia.
The AFIO meeting, open to the public, will begin at 2 p.m. in the Program Center of the Brick Store Museum, 4 Dane St., Kennebunk. A question period will follow the presentation.
A world-renowned expert on Chinese military and naval affairs, Dr. Erickson is also a research associate at Harvard University’s John King Fairbank Center for Chinese Studies. He has
lectured extensively at government, academic, and private sector institutions throughout the United States and Asia, and provided expert testimony and support to Congress and various executive branch offices.
Professor Erickson has authored or edited numerous books and academic studies regarding Asia-Pacific defense issues, and been interviewed or published by news media including the Wall Street Journal, CNN, the BBC, The Economist, New York Times, C-SPAN, Aviation Week & Space Technology, Bloomberg News and others.
TO SPEAK FEBRUARY 18
KENNEBUNK — Mary Margaret Graham, a veteran senior executive at the CIA and Office of the Director of National Intelligence (DNI), will discuss the impact of modern terrorism on American intelligence strategy at the February 18 meeting of the Association of Former Intelligence Officers (AFIO) Maine Chapter
Her talk is expected to include a look at the historical and current posture of federal, international and domestic threat detection and counterterrorism efforts; the new role of state, local and tribal partners; and the challenges of collaboration versus competition in the intelligence community.
She has earned several prestigious medals for her service: the National Intelligence Distinguished Service Medal in 2008, the Distinguished Career Intelligence Medal in 2008, the Secretary of Defense Medal for Meritorious Civilian Service in 2008, the Intelligence Medal of Merit in 2005, the Donovan Award in 2001, and the National Intelligence Medal of Achievement in 1996.Graham served 27 years at the CIA, including as the Associate Deputy Director of Operations for Counterintelligence. From 2005 to 2008, she was appointed the first Deputy DNI for Collection, coordinating the collection efforts of all 15 U.S. intelligence agencies. Earlier in her career, she served as the Executive Assistant to the Deputy Director of the National Security Agency. Following her retirement, Graham was named a Visiting Fellow at the John F. Kennedy School of Government.
The latest in a series of public affairs discussions, the AFIO meeting is open to the public, and will begin at 2 p.m. at the Program Center of the Brick Store Museum, 4 Dane St., Kennebunk. A question period will follow the presentation.
January 2017 Meeting
EXPERT ON TURKISH GEOPOLITICS AFIO’S JAN. 21 SPEAKER
KENNEBUNK — Turkey and its current role in global affairs will be the topic of the January 21st meeting of the Association of Former Intelligence Officers (AFIO), Maine Chapter.
Turkish-American entrepreneur Kutlay Kaya, an international weapons trader and business consultant, will discuss the current political situation in Ankara, and Turkey’s relationships with its Middle Eastern neighbors, Russia and the United States. Kaya is the CEO of Zenith Quest Corp., a Virginia firm that imports Turkish weapons and ammunition for the American market.
Kaya travels to Turkey monthly to develop and transact business, and maintains strong ties with Turkish authorities in the civil government, military, and police forces.
He was a key witness in a recent Turkish national scandal, the 2016 prosecution of a Turkish arms executive convicted of seeking bribes and attempting to sell proprietary weapons designs.
Kaya graduated from 19 Mayis University in Samsun, Turkey, with a bachelor’s degree in Marine Engineering. In 1998, he moved to America and took on consulting and directing responsibilities for two non-profit organizations involved in international humanitarian work, later obtaining a master of arts degree from Liberty University in Lynchburg, VA.
The latest in a series of public affairs discussions, the AFIO meeting is open to the public, and will begin at 2 p.m. at the Program Center of the Brick Store Museum, 4 Dane St., Kennebunk. A question period will follow the presentation.
AFIO (Maine) Meeting
November Meeting Cancelled. Next Meeting 21 January 2017
October 15, 2016 – 2:00 p.m.
Brick Store Museum Program Center
4 Dane Street, Kennebunk, ME
KENNEBUNK — Former Ambassador Charles Dunbar of Brunswick, retired from senior posts at the U.S. State Department and the United Nations, will discuss the complexities of Afghanistan as the Association of Former Intelligence Officers (AFIO) Maine Chapter opens its fall public speaker program.
Ambassador Dunbar will present a talk on “The Afghanistan Briar Patch” at 2 p.m. Oct. 15 at the Brick Store Museum Program Center, 4 Dane St., Kennebunk. The presentation is open to the public and will feature a question period.
Afghanistan has been at war for 38 years, and the prospects are for more of the same. On the home front, the Afghan government is beset by the perennial Taliban insurgency, massive corruption, and the flight of its people as refugees.
Dunbar observes that this leaves the U.S. stuck in an Afghanistan “briar patch,” where it has periodically found itself since 1981, with no end in sight for ending what it used to call “the good war.” Having spent many years’ service in the Middle East, Dunbar is well placed to explore possible outcomes.
Dunbar spent eight of his 32 years with the State Department working in Afghanistan and on its issues before retiring in 1993. While with the State Department, he was chargé d’affaires in Kabul (1981-83), Ambassador to Qatar (1983-85), and Ambassador to Yemen (1988-91) and had earlier assignments in Iran, Afghanistan, Morocco, Algeria and Mauritania.
Since leaving the State Department, he was UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan’s Special Representative in Western Sahara (1997-99), President of the Cleveland Council on World Affairs (1993-2001), and taught at Simmons College (2001-04) and Boston University (2004-15). He now teaches at the Midcoast Senior College in Brunswick.
June 18, 2016
2:00 p.m.
June AFIO Speaker
KENNEBUNK – Fox News network analyst Col. David Hunt, U.S. Army (ret.) will be the featured speaker at the June 18 meeting of the Association of Former Intelligence Officers (AFIO), Maine Chapter.
Hunt will provide a current update on terrorism developments worldwide and discuss the impact of the news media on our perceptions of terrorism. The meeting, open to the public, will begin at 2 p.m. at the Program Center of the Brick Store Museum, 4 Dane St., Kennebunk.
David Hunt, a Scarborough resident, served for 29 years in military intelligence, special operations and counter terrorism. His duties spanned assignments from leadership of a detachment of 12 special forces soldiers to command of a brigade of more than 1,000 personnel.
His Army career included service as the chief tactical advisor for national intelligence in Bosnia, as the facilitator of a $350 million national security program for the CIA and National Security Agency, and as counter terrorism coordinator for the 1988 Summer Olympic Games in Seoul, Korea.
He received his Master’s degree in English from Norwich University and later graduated from the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University.
He has lectured at the Federal Bureau of Investigation Academy, the Central Intelligence Agency, the National Security Agency, and several other high profile agencies, as well as state and local police officials. Bill O’Reilly of the “O’Reilly Factor” called David Hunt the “Best Military Analyst in the Business” and Fox’s “Go to Guy on the War.”
AFIO (Maine) Meeting
May 21, 2016
2:00 p.m.
Submarine Commander Is AFIO Speaker
KENNEBUNK – “Run Silent, Run Deep,” a discussion of the U.S. Navy submarine force, will be the focus of the May 21 meeting of the Association of Former Intelligence Officers (AFIO) Maine Chapter.
Retired Navy Vice Admiral George W. Emery, an Alfred native and former sub commander, will offer insights on topics such as anti-submarine warfare strategy, operational surveillance tactics, and submarine strategic weapon systems development.
Admiral Emery graduated with distinction from the U.S Naval Academy in 1963. He commanded two nuclear submarines during his 33-year naval career and was appointed the 24th Commander of the United States and Allied Submarine Forces, Atlantic by President Clinton in 1993. Emery grew up in Alfred and Springvale, graduated from Sanford High School, and is married to his high school sweetheart, Patricia.
In retirement he has served as Chairman of the Senior Advisory Group to the Director, Los Alamos National Laboratory, and chaired the Submarine Technology Symposium at the Johns Hopkins University’s Applied Physics Laboratory from 2004-2014. From 1997 to 2006 Admiral Emery was a member of the Secretary of the Navy’s Advisory Subcommittee on Naval History. He is a life trustee of the USS Constitution Museum and was the 2011 recipient of the Museum’s “Old Ironsides” Exemplary Service Award.
The meeting, open to the public, will begin at 2 p.m. at the Program Center of the Brick Store Museum, 4 Dane St., Kennebunk. Admiral Emery’s presentation will include a question-answer session.
March 19, 2016
2:00 p.m.
KENNEBUNK – Dr. Andrew S. Erickson, professor of strategy at the U.S. Naval War College China Maritime Studies Institute, will be the featured speaker at the March 19 meeting of the Association of Former Intelligence Officers (AFIO) Maine Chapter.
Dr. Erickson’s talk, titled “China’s Cabbage Strategy: New-Type Great Power Relations, the South China Sea, and Irregular Forces Therein,” will include an overview of recent strategic military moves by China, and the potential impact on Japan, South Korea and U.S. interests. Beijing has deployed the world’s largest blue water coast guard and maritime militia and has been employing them in a “cabbage,” or layered envelopment, configuration.
The AFIO meeting, open to the public, will begin at 2 p.m. in the Program Center of the Brick Store Museum, 4 Dane St., Kennebunk. A question period will follow the presentation.
A world-renowned expert on Chinese military and naval affairs, Dr. Erickson is also a research associate at Harvard University’s John King Fairbank Center for Chinese Studies. He has lectured extensively at government, academic, and private sector institutions throughout the United States and Asia, and provided expert testimony and support to Congress and various executive branch offices.
Professor Erickson has authored or edited numerous books and academic studies regarding Asia-Pacific defense issues, and been interviewed or published by news media including the Wall Street Journal, CNN, the BBC, The Economist, The New York Times, C-SPAN, Aviation Week & Space Technology, Bloomberg News and others.
The FBI’s senior agent in Maine will discuss economic espionage – the bureau’s top priority after terrorism – at the Feb. 20 meeting of the Association of Former Intelligence Officers (AFIO), Maine Chapter.
The presentation by Special Agent Aaron Steps, who oversees the FBI’s three Maine offices, will begin at 2 p.m. in the Brick Store Museum Program Center, 4 Dane St., Kennebunk. The meeting, rescheduled from last month due to January’s heavy snowstorm, is open to the public.
Cyber-based economic espionage, or computer hacking, targets intellectual property and private-sector confidential information, eroding the strength and innovation of the nation’s economy. Experts estimate that for every American company that detects an attack, 100 others may unknowingly be victimized.
The Feb. 20 presentation will describe the nature and extent of the threat, the FBI’s strategy to counter economic espionage and the resources available to American businesses to protect their information. A brief question period will follow his presentation.
Special Agent Steps, who previously worked in the finance industry in New York City, joined the bureau in 2002 and has worked in the counterintelligence and counterterrorism sectors at posts including San Francisco, as well as Nairobi, Kenya and Islamabad, Pakistan.
According to the FBI, economic espionage is a problem that costs the American economy hundreds of billions of dollars per year and puts national security at risk. While it is not a new threat, it is a growing one, and the theft attempts by foreign competitors and adversaries are becoming more brazen and more varied in their approach. The FBI estimates that hundreds of billions of U.S. dollars are lost to foreign competitors every year. These foreign competitors deliberately target economic intelligence in advanced technologies and flourishing U.S. industries.
Historically, economic espionage has been leveled mainly at defense-related and high-tech industries. But recent FBI cases have shown that no industry, large or small, is immune to the threat. Any company with a proprietary product, process, or idea can be a target; any unprotected trade secret is ripe for the taking by those who wish to illegally obtain innovations to increase their market share at a victim company’s expense.
2:00 p.m.
Program Center, Brick Store Museum
Islam in Today’s Global World
Educator, novelist and acclaimed Islamic affairs expert Anouar Majid, Vice President for Global Affairs and Communications at the University of New England, will be the featured speaker at the Nov. 21 meeting of the Maine Chapter of the Association of Former Intelligence Officers (AFIO) in Kennebunk.
The presentation, open to the public, is titled ““Islam in Today’s Global World” and will begin at 2 p.m. in the Program Center of the Brick Store Museum, 4 Dane St., Kennebunk.
Born in Tangier, Morocco, Dr. Majid is the author of five critically acclaimed books on Islam and the West, including Unveiling Traditions (2000), Freedom and Orthodoxy (2004), A Call for Heresy (2007), We Are All Moors (2009) and Islam and America: Building a Future Without Prejudice (2012). He has written for the Washington Post, the Chronicle of Higher Education, and other publications on topics such as “The Politics of Feminism in Islam.”
Dr. Majid’s work and life were the subject of a Bill Moyers Journal interview and an Al Jazeera television program, both aired in 2007. His first novel, Si Yussef was first published in 1992 and he is the editor of Tingismagazine.com, a free online magazine dedicated to a new reading of Islam and its traditions.
Professor Majid is currently acting as founding director of the Center for Global Humanities and Vice President for Global Affairs at the University of New England in Maine. He was instrumental in setting up UNE’s branch campus in Morocco. One of his plans is to turn the campus into a forum for discussion around important global issues and he is working on a project that reexamines the emergence of Islam and the impact of this religion on world history.
REBEL RECRUITMENT in MIDDLE EAST
October 17, 2015 –AFIO/ME Meeting
2:00 p.m.
Program Center, Brick Store Museum
The Maine Chapter of the Association of Former Intelligence Officers welcomes Hector Oviedo Paz, Bolivia S.A., as guest speaker at its October 17, 2015 meeting. Hector Paz’s field work in conflicts in Yemen, Iraq, Ukraine, D.R. Congo, Kosovo, Croatia and Bosnia will be covered in his presentation titled “Rebel Recruitment in Middle East.” His investigative work also includes analysis of the labor market for rebel recruiting in the Syrian civil war.
His papers have been published in American Economics Journal: Applied Economics Journal of Experimental Political Science and The Journal of Conflict Resolution. His writings and commentaries have also appeared in Foreign Affairs, Foreign Policy, The Washington Post, New Republic and The National Interest. His titles include: “The Jihadi Who Came in from The Cold” and “Ramadan in Syria: How Assad, ISIS, and Others are Using the Holy Month.”
Because of Hector Paz’s current sensitive work in war zones throughout the Middle East and southern Europe, he has asked to be an anonymous speaker while here in Maine. We have complied with his wishes by not submitting any newspaper or other media outlets with write-ups about Hector or his subject areas. Also, you have noticed we have gone a little further by not including his photograph here in this exclusive Speaker Notification List, as well.
The meeting will be at 2:00 PM, Saturday, October 17, 2015, at the Brick Store Museum Program Center, 4 Dane Street, Kennebunk. For more information call 207/967-4298.
DIPLOMACY AND INTELLIGENCE
September 26, 2015 Meeting
The Maine Chapter of the Association of Former Intelligence Officers welcomes Ambassador Laurence F. Pope, II, as guest speaker at its September 26, 2015 meeting. Pope is author of “The Demilitarization of American Diplomacy: Two Cheers for Striped Pants.” Pope, who is both an insider and historian, will speak about the dysfunction of the State Department and its Foreign Service and contends that in the information age diplomacy is more important than ever. Without a change in thinking from an era of failed nation building, the U.S. may find itself having to fight more wars than it needs to.
Pope served as ambassador to Chad from September 1993 to June 1996 and was temporary Chief of Mission in Tripoli October 2012 to January 2013 immediately following Ambassador Christopher Stevens who was killed in the attack on the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi.
Pope has held a number of senior posts in the State Department including Director for Northern Gulf Affairs (1987-1990), Associate Director for Counter Terrorism (1991-1993), and Political Adviser to Gen. Zinni, USMG Commander-in-Chief of the U.S. Central Command (1997-2000).
Ambassador Pope retired from the Foreign Service in 2000 with 31 years of service, however he continues to consult for various institutions. A respected Arabist, he speaks Arabic and French.
Ambassador Pope is a graduate of Bowdoin College, did advanced studies at Princeton University, and is a graduate of U.S. Department of State Senior Service Seminar as well as a Senior Fellow at the Armed Forces Staff College. He resides in Portland, Maine.
The meeting, which is open to the public, will be at 2:00 p.m., Saturday, September 26, 2015, at the Brick Store Museum program center, 4 Dane Street, Kennebunk. For more information call 207-967-4298.
YEMEN 2015: How and Why a Political Awakening Became a NightmareThe Maine Chapter of the Association of Former Intelligence Officers will host Charles F. Dunbar, former U.S. Ambassador to Yemen at its June 20, 2015 meeting. Ambassador Dunbar served 31 years as a State Department Foreign Service officer with assignments to Iran, Afghanistan, Morocco, Algeria and Mauritania. He became charge d’affaires at the U.S. Embassy in Kabul, Afghanistan from 1981 to 1983, and U. S. Ambassador to Yemen 1988 to 1991. In 1991 he became UN Secretary General Kofi Annan’s Special Representative leading a UN Peace Operation in Western Sahara.Since leaving the Foreign Service Ambassador Dunbar has taught at Simmons College and currently teaches at Boston University.
Yemen is one of the oldest centers of civilization in the Near East and believed to be the seat of biblical Sheba. Ambassador Dunbar describes the present Republic of Yemen as a failed Middle Eastern state along with Syria, Iraq and Libya. After the three years of UN-assisted negotiations failed, former President Saleh presided over and abetted the country’s slide into civil war after popular protests forced his resignation. Each country neighboring Yemen has its own special conflicting interests. Ambassador Dunbar sees the U.S. policy of droning al-Qa’ida operatives as short sighted, failing to fully appreciate what state failure in Yemen would mean.
The meeting, which is open to the public, will be at 2:00 p.m., Saturday, June 20, 2015, at the Brick Store Museum program center, 4 Dane Street, Kennebunk. For information call 207-967-4298.
Dr. James R. Holmes, speaker at the May 16, 2015 meeting of the Maine Chapter of the Association of Former Intelligence Officers will explain how China will establish its area of influence in the South China Sea comparable to the American Monroe Doctrine. Dr. Holmes is professor of strategy and policy at the U.S. Naval War College and senior fellow at the University of Georgia School of Public and International Affairs. A former U.S. surface warfare officer and combat veteran of the first Gulf War, he served as a gunnery and engineering officer in the battleshipWisconsin and damage control instructor in the Surface Warfare Officers School Command, and military professor of strategy at the Naval War College.
Dr. Holmes asserts that China will use law enforcement assets and not military to make itself sovereign over the South China Sea. Using police forces to enforce Beijing’s will makes it unpalatable for rivals to deploy military force. China will keep military forces in reserve in case Southeastern States, possibly with allies like the United States, push back effectively to use law-enforcement assets to police regional waters and skies.
March Meeting21 March 2015Recently retired Deputy Under Secretary for Intelligence at Headquarters, U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Chet Lunner will be speaking on “Terrorism in Vacationland, It’s closer than you think.”February MeetingCancelledJanuary 17, 2015
ADVANCING AMERICAN INTELLIGENCE IN A TIME OF INCREASING TRANSPARENCY will be the focus of the January 17, 2015 meeting of the Maine Chapter of the Association of Intelligence Officers with speaker Kevin O’Connell. Moving from open to closed information sources and the challenges of secrecy in an open society, O’Connell will touch on issues such as the Snowden affair, NSA, and provide a glimpse of how the White House situation room operates.O’Connell joined the Department of Defense in 1982 occupying positions as senior staff officer and intelligence analyst. In 1986 he joined the State Department’s Bureau of Intelligence and Research. In 1990 he became Senior Analyst in the White House Situation Room receiving a Sustained Superior Performance Award for his work. He later served as Special Assistant to the Vice President for National Security Affairs. During 1993-1995 he was responsible for assessing the openness initiative of the Director of Central Intelligence.O’Connell worked for RAND for almost ten years where he founded and directed the Intelligence Policy Center. He is currently President and CEO of Innovative Analytics and Training, L.L.C., to improve analysis and decision making for government and business clients.The meeting will be held at 2:00 p.m., Saturday, January 17, 2015, in the Brick Store Museum Program Center, 4 Dane Street, Kennebunk, and is open to the public.November 15, 2014 — AFIO/NE/ME Meeting
2:00 p.m.
Brick Store Museum Program Center
4 Dane Street, Kennebunk, ME
REPRESENTING AMERICA was the career choice of Ambassador Thomas N. Hull, III and will be the subject of his talk at the November 15, 2014 meeting of the Association of Former Intelligence Officers, 2:00 p.m. in the Brick Store Museum Center, 4 Dane Street in Kennebunk.
Ambassador Hull is an expert on African affairs with a long career as a diplomat. He will explain what Embassies and Consulates do and the different functions of each.
Our speaker has served as Ambassador to Sierra Leone (2004-2007), Charge d’Affaires to Ethiopia (2001-2004), and Minister Counselor for Public Affairs in Nigeria (1993-1995). He also held important diplomatic positions in the Czech Republic, Somalia, Burkina Faso, and the Democratic Republic of Congo. He was Director of African Affairs (1995-1997) at the U.S. Information Agency prior to its merger with the Department of State. He is recipient of the Presidential Meritorious Service Award from President Obama for his contribution to peace building and bringing Liberian ex-President Charles Taylor to justice. After his retirement, from 2007-2010 Ambassador. Hull was Professor of International Relations at Simmons College in Boston.
Ambassador Hull will address U.S. intelligence efforts after 9/11 regarding Ethiopia and Somalia and will speak about other West African countries’ concerns such as Boko Haram, Ebola, and jihardists in the Sahel.
Most recently Ambassador Hull has been recalled by the State Department for positions in Malawi and Gambia and will be returning to the latter in 2015.
The meeting, which is open to the public, will be Saturday, November 15, 2014, at 2:00 p.m. in the Brick Store Museum Program Center, 4 Dane Street in Kennebunk.
For information call 201-967-4298.
“John S. Park to speak on North Korea”.
OCTOBER 18, 2014 — AFIO Meeting
2:00 p.m.
Brick Store Museum Program Center
4 Dane Street, Kennebunk, ME
Dealing with North Korea will be the subject of guest speaker Dr. John Park at the October 18, 2014 meeting of the Association of Former Intelligence Officers at 2:00 p.m. in the Brick Store Museum Program Center, 4 Dane Street, Kennebunk
Dr. Park is an Adjunct Lecturer at Harvard University and a Research Associate at MIT. He was the 2012-2013 Stanton Nuclear Security Junior Faculty Fellow at MIT’s Security Studies Program. He previously worked at the U.S. Institute of Peace in Washington, D.C.; and earlier in Goldman Sachs’ M&A Advisory Group in Hong Kong and the Boston Consulting Group’s Financial Services Practice in Seoul.
Dr. Park has contributed to a number of books and publications on North Korea. His current research focuses on the North Korean regime’s accumulated learning in evading targeted sanctions. He received his M.Phil. and Ph.D. from Cambridge University and completed his pre-doctoral and post-doctoral training at the Harvard Kennedy School’s Belfer Center.
The meeting, which is open to the public, will be held on Saturday, October 18, 2014, 2:00 p.m. in the Brick Store Museum Program Center, 4 Dane Street, Kennebunk, Maine.
For information call: 207-967-4298.
November 15 meeting our speaker is Ambassador Thomas Hull.
The Maine Chapter of the Association of Former Intelligence Officers will hold its first Fall meeting on September 20, 2014, at 2:00 p.m. in the Brick Store Program Center, 4 Dane Street, Kennebunk.
While our speakers most often speak about experiences in the clandestine service, Patrick Briggs, our guest on September 20, will describe the overt intelligence role of the military attaches and its importance to national security.
Briggs served as Assistant U.S. Air Attache in Brasilia, Brazil from 1972-1975. On returning to the U.S. he was assigned to the International Political Military Affairs Office in the Air Staff of the Latin America Division. Later he served on the staff of the Secretary of Defense in International Security Affairs (ISA) for two years where he was country director for Argentina, Chile, Paraguay, Bolivia and Peru.
Our speaker has some interesting (if not hair-raising) stories from his attache service. You won’t want to miss them on Saturday, September 20, 2014, 2:00 p.m.at the Brick Store Museum Program Center, 4 Dane Street, Kennebunk.
The meeting is open to the public. For information call 967-4298.
Please note the change in meeting location below
June 2014
UNMASKING THE LOCKERBIE BOMBERS
The bombing of Pan American Airlines flight 103 from London to New York on the night of December 21, 1988, resulted in the deaths of 270 people. Jack Christie, former Chief of CIA’s Foreign Finds Laboratory, will tell the exciting story of the efforts to determine the cause of the explosion, identify the perpetrators, and bring them to justice. You can hear all about it at the June 21, 2014 meeting of the Maine Chapter of the Association of Intelligence Officers, at 2:00 p.m. at the Brick Store Museum Program Center. The story reflects the close cooperation between the U.S. and Scottish intelligence and police agencies. As much of the Pan Am 103 story has (by design) not been reflected in the mass media, Jack will attempt to tell “the rest of the story”.
Jack Christie joined the CIA Office of Technical Services in 1970 as an Electronics Engineer designing and producing small electronic devices for support of field operations. The mission of the Foreign Finds Laboratory is to analyze and identify the origin and technical ability of electronic devices targeted against US interests in the field.. Jack continued to work part-time as a contractor until 2012.
The meeting, which is open to the public, will be Saturday, June 21, 2014 at 2:00 p.m. at the Brick Store Museum Program Center, 4 Dane Street, Kennebunk, Me. For information call 207-967-4298.
May 2014 The Program Center, Brickstore Museum.
For more information call 207-967-4298
17 May 2014
Whether your interest is history or espionage, the next meeting of the Maine Chapter of the Association of Former Intelligence Officers (AFIO) has something for you. The meeting, to be held at the Brick Store Museum Program Center on May 17, 2014 at 2:00 p.m., brings us Ken Daigler, retired CIA operations officer, and author of his recently released book Spies, Patriots and Traitors: American Intelligence in the Revolutionary War. As an historian and intelligence professional, Daigler is able tell the story of intelligence during the Revolutionary period and at the same time relate it to current events.
Daigler has a B.A. from Center College in Kentucky and an M.A. from the Maxwell School at Syracuse University, both in history with a focus on American intelligence activities from 1765-1865.
Daigler has been a consultant in counterintelligence for the Department of Defense and served in the Marine Corps during the Vietnam War.
April 2014
THE VENEZUELAN ENCOUNTER
A challenge changing power structures
“Worldwide, power is shifting from brawn to brains, from entrenched dictators to people in town squares and cyberspace. It’s happening in Venezuela now!” So writes Jack Hardy, coordinator for our Association of Former Intelligence Association’s meeting to be held at 2:00 p.m., April 19, 2014, at Kennebunk High School.
This insiders’ report on Venezuela and the popular uprising against the Maduro regime will be made possible through Skype with three participants at three locations:
Jack Hardy, in Miami, is a business executive, author and consultant who
lived in Caracas for 30 years and traveled widely in Venezuela as well as Central and South America. He was an associate professor of marketing at IESA, Venezuela’s graduate school of business. His text “The Core Value Proposition” is used by business leaders worldwide.
Jim Wyss, in Bogota, is South America Bureau Chief for the Miami-Herald and McClatchy newspapers. He holds an MS from Columbia University’s Gradu
ate School of Journalism and a BA in journalism and Spanish from American University. He is author of a blog “Inside South America.”
Eduardo
Alvarez, in Chicago, is a Venezuelan citizen and marketing professional with a degree in Computer Science from Venezuela and training in Technology Management at Northwestern University. Born in the early 1960s in Caracas, Eduardo experienced the period when Venezuela was on a path to progress before the deterioration in government and the Chavez regime.
The meeting will cover Venezuela’s history, development, politics, and present problems followed by a question and answer period.
The meeting is open to the public and will be held at 2:00 p.m., April 19, 2014 at Kennebunk High School. For information call 207-967-4298
Meeting Material Downloads [wpdm_file id=3] [wpdm_file id=2] [wpdm_file id=1]
Please note the upcoming changes in the meeting locations
19 April in the Auditorium at Kennebunk High School, 89 Fletcher Street.
17 May The Program Center, Brickstore Museum.
21 June The Program Center, Brickstore Museum.
March 2014
SPYING AROUND THE WORLD
WITH DAVID HUNT
David P. Hunt, retired CIA operations officer, returns to the Maine Chapter of the 
Association of Former Intelligence Officers at 2:00 p.m, on Saturday, March 15, 2014 at the Brick Store Museum Program Center, 2 Dane Street, in Kennebunk, with more tales from the vault.
Hunt, who has 32 years experience in intelligence, will draw vignettes from six field tours in Italy, Vietnam, Somalia, Norway, France and New York City to illustrate the type of espionage cases which occurred during and after the Cold War. He will describe a major post-war program directed against U. S. and American proprietary businesses which lasted 30 years.
Hunt will portray a changing profession which has grown to encompass technology and cyber, but in which ages-old human-source intelligence remains critical. He will comment on current matters of interest such as drones and the impact of Snowden.
The meeting, which is open to the public, will be held at 2:00 p.m. on Saturday, March 15, 2014, at the Brick Store Museum Program Center, 2 Dane Street, Kennebunk, ME
For information call 207-967-4298.
February 2014
Covert Action in Tradition and Law
Our guest at the February 8, 2014 meeting of the Maine Chapter of the Association of Former Intelligence Officers will be Joseph Wippl, speaking on COVERT ACTION IN TRADITION AND LAW. Wippl will address the traditions of covert actions beginning with OSS in WW II and how they evolved into law.
Wippl is a former Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) officer with 30 years of experience in the National Clandestine Service (NCS). He served overseas in Bonn, West Germany; Guatemala City; Luxembourg; Madrid; Mexico City; Vienna; and Berlin. Other CIA assignments include senior representative to the Aldrich Ames Damage Assessment Team, Chief of the Europe Division, and CIA’s Director of Congressional Affairs.
Wippl has been teaching at Boston University since 2006. He has a BA from Marquette University, an MA from the Univiversity of Minnesota in European History, and is a PhD. Candidate in European History at the University of Minnesota.
For more information call 207-967-4298
Please note the upcoming changes in the meeting locations
8 February 2014 Brickstore Museum’s Program Center, 2 Dane Street, Kennebunk
19 April in the Auditorium at Kennebunk High School, 89 Fletcher Street.
17 May The Program Center, Brickstore Museum.
21 June The Program Center, Brickstore Museum.