Thomas Alan Twetten (born 1935) was a Central Intelligence Agency case officer. From 1991 to 1993, he was Deputy Director of Operations (DDO).[1]

Early life

Twetten grew up in the town of Spencer, Iowa. He graduated with a degree in psychology from Iowa State University in 1957, where he was a member of the Army R.O.T.C. After graduation, he became a military intelligence officer and received a masters from Columbia University.[2]

Career

In 1962, he worked for the United States State Department in Lagos, Nigeria as a political officer.[2]

He was posted to Benghazi, Libya during the 1967 Arab–Israeli war, where he was the chief of base. There, he developed a friendship with Richard Calder, who went on to become Deputy Director of Administration (DDA) in 2001.[3] From 1979 to 1982, Twetten served as station chief in Amman, Jordan. In 1983, he became deputy chief of the C.I.A.'s Near East and South Asia Division and was promoted to chief in 1986.[2]

In 1988, Twetten was head of the Near East Division of the CIA's Directorate of Operations. He had a significant impact on the events in Afghanistan immediately before the Soviet Union's withdrawal. He later described former president Bill Clinton as "personally afraid of any connection with the CIA".[4]

On January 1, 1991, Twetten became the Deputy Director of Operations. His final assignment was station chief in London, United Kingdom from 1993 to 1995.

After his retirement from the CIA, Twetten became an antique-book seller in Vermont.[4]

References

  1. ↑ Denise Grady (15 June 2012). "Richard F. Stolz Dies at 86; Headed C.I.A. Spy Operations". New York Times. Retrieved 22 July 2020.
  2. 1 2 3 Wines, Michael (November 20, 1990). "Washington at Work; After 30 Years in Shadows, a Spymaster Emerges". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved August 24, 2021.
  3. ↑ Loeb, Vernon (February 4, 2000). "Ex-Spy's Mission at CIA: Burying the Bureaucracy". The Washington Post. Retrieved August 24, 2021.
  4. 1 2 Steve Coll (3 March 2005). Ghost Wars: The Secret History of the CIA, Afghanistan and Bin Laden. Penguin Books. p. 243. ISBN 9780141935799.
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