/EINPresswire.com/ -- FORT BELVOIR, VA--(Marketwired - October 03, 2016) - The Joint Improvised-Threat Defeat Agency (JIDA) became part of the Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA) today in accordance with Congressional direction in the FY2016 National Defense Authorization Act, and will now be known as the Joint Improvised-Threat Defeat Organization, or JIDO. DTRA and JIDO have been working on the transition since December 2015 to ensure that none of the transition activities impede the critical missions of DTRA and JIDO in supporting frontline warfighters. This is critical as weapons of mass destruction and improvised explosive devices are both weapons preferred by terrorists and non-state actors fighting U.S. and allied forces on the battlefield.

"We welcome the members of JIDO into DTRA, and we are all committed to ensuring mission success while in the background we integrate our forces," said DTRA Acting Director Shari Durand. "While we may have different focus areas, both our missions have some overlapping customers, threats and networks. As we start the learning process and understand more what each organization is doing that's when I think the greatest capabilities and the greatest synergy will come, and that will benefit the warfighter tremendously."

Collaborative teams from both DTRA and JIDO have been working through the issues associated with any large reorganization to ensure that both mission sets are not degraded. Both organizations are relatively young and have recently gone through their own transitions -- JIDO started as an Army task force in 2003 to address the growing threat posed by improvised explosive devices (IEDs), and has evolved in terms of resources and responsibilities over the years; DTRA was stood up in 1998 by combining several WMD-related organizations and later incorporated the USSTRATCOM Center for Combating Weapons of Mass Destruction (SCC-WMD) and teamed with the Standing Joint Force Headquarters for Elimination of WMD (SJFHQ-E).

"The threat to our deployed warfighters from improvised threats continues to grow and as such, Congress and the Department of Defense have determined that our organization (JIDO) must be enduring," said JIDO director Army Lt. Gen. Michael Shields. "We will continue to execute our Quick Reaction Capability mission as part of DTRA and as such, we will continue to help the warfighter adapt to the current and emerging threats on the battlefield by rapidly delivering capability at the speed of war. The only change the warfighter will experience is the change of our name."

The transition of JIDO under DTRA is expected to result in greater mission collaboration and efficiencies over time. Efficiencies are anticipated through the integration of offices in management areas including: human resources, security and counterintelligence, financial management, contracts, facilities and logistics management, and in the command staff elements. Integration of these foundational supporting elements ensures a holistic integration of management practices and processes. Manpower efficiencies are expected once the offices are able to execute their missions under the revised structures and demonstrate no negative mission impact. Additionally, efficiencies are expected through collaboration and shared use of facilities and direct mission capabilities, such as testing and evaluation infrastructure for research and development.

DTRA is the U.S. Department of Defense's official Combat Support Agency for countering weapons of mass destruction, addressing the entire spectrum of chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear and high yield explosive threats. DTRA's programs include basic science research and development, operational support to U.S. warfighters on the front line, and an in-house WMD think tank that aims to anticipate and mitigate future threats long before they have a chance to harm the United States and our allies. SCC-WMD, the U.S. Strategic Command Center for Combating Weapons of Mass Destruction, synchronizes Combating Weapons of Mass Destruction efforts across our military's geographic commands and leverages the people, programs and interagency relationships of DTRA at a strategic level. We work with the military services, other elements of the United States government, and countries across the planet on counterproliferation, nonproliferation and WMD reduction issues with one goal in mind: Making the World Safer.

On the Web: www.dtra.mil

Media Contact:
Defense Threat Reduction Agency
1 (703) 767-5870