New Defense Threat Reduction Agency Director Named

Kenneth A. Myers III has been selected as the new director, Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA). He was sworn in July 27, 2009, at the Pentagon.

Undersecretary of Defense for Acquisition, Technology and Logistics, Ashton B. Carter, said, "The selection of Ken Myers as the director of DTRA is another significant step in transforming how we defend against the threat of weapons of mass destruction. He has the right background with 15 years of hands-on nonproliferation, counter-proliferation and arms control experience at the national level to lead the agency in its mission to protect the United States and its allies from weapons of mass destruction (WMD) and support a safe, secure and reliable deterrent." Carter added that Myers also brings experience with the Moscow and START treaties; export controls; the U.S. - India Peaceful Atomic Energy Cooperation Act; and Cooperative Proliferation Detection, Interdiction Assistance, and Conventional Threat Reduction Act.

Myers most recently served as a senior professional staff member on the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations. In this position, he serves as the senior advisor to Sen. Richard G. Lugar, the committee's ranking member, on European, former Soviet and Central Asian Affairs, and the Caucasus. He joined the committee in 2003.

Myers earned his bachelors degree from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, and a masters degree from the Catholic University of America.

DTRA is a Department of Defense combat support agency with an annual budget of more than $2.8 billion and a military/civilian workforce of approximately 1,900. DTRA focuses on reducing the threat of weapons of mass destruction through a combination of advanced technology programs and innovative operational methods. Several technologies developed at DTRA have made significant impact in Afghanistan and Iraq. DTRA also has an integral role in several international WMD-related treaty verification programs.

DTRA headquarters is located at Fort Belvoir, Va. The agency operates field offices in Alexandria, Va.; Albuquerque, N.M.; and San Francisco, Calif. Overseas locations include Darmstadt, Germany; London, United Kingdom; Almaty, Kazakhstan; Tashkent, Uzbekistan; Moscow and Votkinsk, Russia; Kiev, Ukraine; and Yokota, Japan.