The Cable

The Cable goes inside the foreign policy machine, from Foggy Bottom to Turtle Bay, the White House to Embassy Row.

A Plan to Close Guantánamo Is Coming, Just Not This Week

Another week has gone by, and the White House still has not rolled out its long-awaited plan to close the detention facility at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba.

ARLINGTON, VA - SEPTEMBER 26:  Aerial photo of the Pentagon in Arlington, Virgina on September 26, 2003.  (Photo by Andy Dunaway/USAF via Getty Images)
ARLINGTON, VA - SEPTEMBER 26: Aerial photo of the Pentagon in Arlington, Virgina on September 26, 2003. (Photo by Andy Dunaway/USAF via Getty Images)
ARLINGTON, VA - SEPTEMBER 26: Aerial photo of the Pentagon in Arlington, Virgina on September 26, 2003. (Photo by Andy Dunaway/USAF via Getty Images)

Another week has gone by, and the White House still has not rolled out its long-awaited plan to close the detention facility at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba.

Another week has gone by, and the White House still has not rolled out its long-awaited plan to close the detention facility at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba.

Chatter that the release was imminent picked up over the past week after defense and White House officials said they expected the Obama administration to deliver the document to Congress soon, likely by Friday. But several defense officials confirmed to Foreign Policy on Friday that the plan will not come this week, and they are unsure when President Barack Obama will sign off on it.

Officials in the National Security Council have repeatedly chosen to put off releasing the plan originally drafted by the Defense Department last summer, which is expected to lay out options for transferring detainees from the Guantánamo facility to military or civilian prisons in the United States. Congress has passed legislation expressly forbidding Obama from doing so, so a decision to move ahead would be a legacy-defining test of the limits of presidential power.

The Pentagon has been ready to present its plan to Congress at least since August, defense officials told Foreign Policy. To prepare the report, a team of Pentagon officials shuttled between military prisons in South Carolina and Kansas, as well as several high-security civilian prisons in Colorado to assess their suitability to house dozens of detainees, all of whom are deemed unsuitable for release. There are 112 prisoners still being held at Guantánamo, 53 of which have been eligible for release for months or even years. The Defense Department continues to look for third countries that will take them in upon release.

The delay comes amid mounting speculation that the president may choose to shutter the controversial prison by executive action. That would be yet more evidence of Obama’s willingness to back away from a campaign promise not to follow in the footsteps of his predecessor, George W. Bush, by acting unilaterally in defiance of Congress.

Photo credit: USAF via Getty Images

More from Foreign Policy

Newspapers in Tehran feature on their front page news about the China-brokered deal between Iran and Saudi Arabia to restore ties, signed in Beijing the previous day, on March, 11 2023.
Newspapers in Tehran feature on their front page news about the China-brokered deal between Iran and Saudi Arabia to restore ties, signed in Beijing the previous day, on March, 11 2023.

Saudi-Iranian Détente Is a Wake-Up Call for America

The peace plan is a big deal—and it’s no accident that China brokered it.

Austin and Gallant stand at podiums side by side next to each others' national flags.
Austin and Gallant stand at podiums side by side next to each others' national flags.

The U.S.-Israel Relationship No Longer Makes Sense

If Israel and its supporters want the country to continue receiving U.S. largesse, they will need to come up with a new narrative.

Russian President Vladimir Putin lays flowers at the Moscow Kremlin Wall in the Alexander Garden during an event marking Defender of the Fatherland Day in Moscow.
Russian President Vladimir Putin lays flowers at the Moscow Kremlin Wall in the Alexander Garden during an event marking Defender of the Fatherland Day in Moscow.

Putin Is Trapped in the Sunk-Cost Fallacy of War

Moscow is grasping for meaning in a meaningless invasion.

An Iranian man holds a newspaper reporting the China-brokered deal between Iran and Saudi Arabia to restore ties, in Tehran on March 11.
An Iranian man holds a newspaper reporting the China-brokered deal between Iran and Saudi Arabia to restore ties, in Tehran on March 11.

How China’s Saudi-Iran Deal Can Serve U.S. Interests

And why there’s less to Beijing’s diplomatic breakthrough than meets the eye.