International Military Students: DOD and State Should Assess Vetting Implementation and Strengthen Information Sharing
Fast Facts
The Department of Defense offers education and training to foreign military personnel—known as international military students—at U.S. DOD sites. After a student killed 3 people at a base in Florida in 2019, DOD implemented security procedures for vetting these students.
Some stakeholders in the vetting process have found opportunities for improvement. For example, manual processes and unclear roles may delay information sharing among involved agencies.
But DOD hasn't assessed the process since establishing it in FY 2020. So, DOD doesn't know what factors might be affecting vetting, or how to fix them.
Our recommendations address these issues.
Highlights
What GAO Found
Starting in fiscal year 2020, DOD developed and phased in procedures to vet international military students attending training at Department of Defense (DOD) installations and facilities in the U.S. With few exceptions, DOD vets these students prior to travel to the U.S. for training and periodically during the students' stay. According to training management system data, from October 1, 2019, through March 31, 2023, DOD vetted over 29,000 cases, including students and any accompanying family members. DOD identified findings in 103 cases: four were classified as “high” risk, 18 were “moderate”, and 81 were “low.” DOD denied access to nine students for various security-related reasons.
International Military Student Cases by Risk Level and Adjudication Result for October 1, 2019, through March 31, 2023
|
Risk level |
Cases |
Approved for training |
Denied |
Pending |
Adjudication not performeda |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
High risk |
4 |
0 |
4 |
0 |
0 |
|
Moderate risk |
18 |
7 |
3 |
4 |
4 |
|
Low risk |
81 |
47 |
2 |
14 |
18 |
|
No findings |
29,202 |
29,202 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
|
Total |
29,305 |
29,256 |
9 |
18 |
22 |
Source: GAO analysis of data from the Defense Security Cooperation Agency. | GAO-24-106421
Note: Vetting of international military students began with basic screening in December 2019 and DOD continued to phase in initial security vetting through March 2022.
aDepartment of Defense (DOD) officials stated they did not adjudicate 22 of the moderate and low risk cases for reasons such as training cancellation or the student completed training during the establishment of vetting procedures and has since departed the U.S.
DOD has taken some steps to improve implementation of vetting procedures for international military students. However, DOD has not assessed implementation to identify opportunities for improvement. For example, stakeholders told GAO of factors in vetting implementation that could be improved, such as limitations with in-country data collection and a time-consuming process for sharing information between stakeholders. DOD circulated a draft progress report on program metrics, such as the number of students who underwent vetting for fiscal year 2022. However, DOD has not finalized the report, and it is unclear if it will include an assessment of any opportunities for improvement in the vetting procedures. Without an assessment, DOD will not have a full understanding of factors that hinder vetting implementation. DOD also cannot determine whether or how it should take action to improve vetting implementation.
The Department of State and DOD share information to support international military student vetting in a variety of ways, such as sharing database access and confirming vetting. However, State and DOD have not ensured that roles and responsibilities are fully clarified in guidance or written agreements. If DOD and State take actions to clarify roles and responsibilities for sharing information on issues related to international military students, the agencies can better coordinate on program management, including communicating relevant policy updates and sharing additional data and analysis regarding vetting.
Why GAO Did This Study
DOD provides education and training to foreign military personnel at DOD sites. On December 6, 2019, an international military student killed three U.S. service members and injured eight others while attending training at Naval Air Station Pensacola, Florida. The attack raised questions about personnel safety at DOD sites hosting students for training.
The William M. (Mac) Thornberry National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021 includes a provision for GAO to review DOD's implementation of security vetting for international military students and accompanying family members. GAO's report assesses the extent to which (1) DOD has developed vetting procedures for international military students and addressed any implementation challenges; and (2) State and DOD have shared information related to students' training at DOD sites in the U.S.
GAO reviewed documentation; analyzed vetting result data for October 1, 2019, through March 31, 2023; and interviewed DOD and State officials and stakeholders from six unified combatant commands and three U.S. embassies.
Recommendations
GAO is making four recommendations, including for DOD to assess vetting implementation and take action to mitigate any factors affecting implementation as identified in its assessment, and for DOD and State to clarify roles and responsibilities for sharing information. DOD and State generally concurred with the recommendations.
Recommendations for Executive Action
| Agency Affected | Recommendation | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Department of Defense | The Secretary of Defense should ensure that the Under Secretary of Defense for Intelligence and Security and Under Secretary of Defense for Policy—in coordination with the secretaries of the military departments—assess the implementation of vetting procedures for international military students. The assessment should include in-country data collection and the process for sharing information between stakeholders. (Recommendation 1) |
DOD concurred with this recommendation and has identified actions it plans to take to address it. Specifically, according to DOD's response from August 2024, DOD conducts data calls with the Combatant Commands and the Embassies to identify potential areas for improvement in international military student vetting including those related to in-country data collection, as well as confirmed instances of training cancellation or declination due to vetting requirements. In addition, DOD will review the results of international military student vetting for two years after full implementation to determine the relative frequencies of the identification of derogatory information and student disqualification based on various collected data points. DOD will assess the data collected in these assessments for potential program improvements and make recommendations as required. We will monitor DOD's actions to implement this recommendation.
|
| Department of Defense | The Secretary of Defense should ensure that the Under Secretary of Defense for Intelligence and Security and Under Secretary of Defense for Policy—in coordination with the secretaries of the military departments—take action to mitigate any ongoing factors affecting the implementation of the vetting procedures as identified in the assessment of vetting implementation. (Recommendation 2) |
DOD concurred with this recommendation and has identified actions it plans to take to address it. Specifically, according to DOD's response from August 2024, DOD will work with stakeholders to establish an implementation plan (as required) once the assessment for recommendation 1 is complete. Additionally, DOD will establish a timeline of reporting requirements to ensure a measured solution. We will monitor DOD's actions to implement this recommendation.
|
| Department of Defense | The Secretary of Defense should ensure that the Under Secretary of Defense for Intelligence and Security and the Under Secretary of Defense for Policy—in collaboration with the Assistant Secretary of State for the Bureau of Consular Affairs, and the Assistant Secretary of State for the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor—clarify roles and responsibilities for sharing information on issues related to international military students. This should include roles and responsibilities for policy updates, data sharing, and analysis. (Recommendation 3) |
DOD concurred with this recommendation and has identified actions it plans to take to address it. Specifically, according to DOD's response from August 2024, DOD will analyze the roles and responsibilities, current policy, and procedures to shape a request for information from DOD stakeholders and State. DOD will use the results of the analysis and information request to develop a draft memorandum of agreement or understanding to clarify and formalize the roles and responsibilities. DOD officials stated that they expect to complete these efforts in summer 2025.
|
| Department of State | The Secretary of State should ensure that the Assistant Secretary of State for the Bureau of Consular Affairs, and the Assistant Secretary of State for the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor—in collaboration with the Under Secretary of Defense for Intelligence and Security, and the Under Secretary of Defense for Policy—clarify roles and responsibilities for sharing information on issues related to international military students. This should include roles and responsibilities for policy updates, data sharing, and analysis. (Recommendation 4) |
State concurred with this recommendation and has identified actions it plans to take to address it. As of January 2025, State updated its Foreign Affairs' Manual to reflect the changes in DOD vetting and describe how visa adjudicators should process international military student visa applications and disseminated the updated manual to visa issuing posts, according to State officials. State is also working with DOD on improving data sharing and analysis through coordination steps planned for fiscal year 2025. Specifically, as of January 2025, State stated that international military student vetting through the National Vetting Center is scheduled to begin in March 2025. However, State does not have a current method for accessing vetting results within DOD's data system, which would act as a short-term solution to assist posts abroad if they have an issue receiving vetting results from DOD or when processing a domestic renewal for international military students. We will monitor State's actions to implement this recommendation.
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