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Posted by Jim Stroud

June 16, 2006

WASHINGTON — The CIA is pushing its spooks into the field faster, giving 85 percent overseas assignments within a year after they finish training.

It will fall to the incoming spy chief — Michael Hayden, if he’s confirmed — to figure out how best to use them.

In the past, newly hired operatives have complained that they complete training at the CIA’s facility, called The Farm, and land behind desks. But now, only 15 percent stay stateside to study languages or get specialized instruction after the traditional yearlong training program, according to newly disclosed agency figures.

By next year, the CIA plans to have tripled the number of spies collecting intelligence around the world, compared with 2001.

The ramping up has been nearly five years in the works as the CIA and other spy agencies received an influx of money after the Sept. 11 attacks.

Meanwhile, a new director will soon take the helm of a CIA that is trying to find its identity in an era of intelligence changes, no longer perched atop the 15 other spy agencies.

Outgoing Director Porter Goss led the agency as Congress approved the changes, and he embarked on a bumpy path of putting them in place. The incoming director moves in with a clean slate and an opportunity to steer the CIA’s direction.

In a nod to the state of the CIA’s morale this week, Hayden told the Senate Intelligence Committee, “It’s been a difficult time for the agency.”

Yet some officials have tried to dispel the idea of a spy agency in shambles by pointing to successes. They described a CIA that is taking more risks, enhancing its cadre of analysts and finding new — albeit covert — addresses around the world.

In his 19 months on the job, Goss opened or reopened more than 20 CIA stations and bases. The precise locations are classified, but officials in recent months have said he’s paid more attention to Africa, historically a low CIA priority.

Goss has also increased the focus on Latin America, where intelligence officials see Venezuela seeking closer ties with Cuba, Iran and North Korea.

During his public confirmation testimony this week, Hayden didn’t offer specifics about his geographic interests but stressed a need for attention on Iran and North Korea as well as on al-Qaida and other issues.

READ: CIA plans to triple number of spies

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