Bureau 39
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Officially, the United States Government denies the existence of a Bureau of Extraterrestrial Affairs, as it has been dubbed by conspiracy theorists, stating that there have been no encounters between the United States and nations or governments of an extraterrestrial nature, and thus there has never been a need for a formal framework for diplomacy and foreign affairs relating to aliens. Officially, while extraterrestrials are known to exist, they have been encountered by the United States only as refugees, such as Superman, and that sustained contact - peaceful or otherwise - is simply not viable across the interstellar distances involved.
Unofficially, the United States is aware of several alien incursions and near-misses since the advent of global communications and detection during the Cold War, and suspects numerous past visitations dating back centuries. The officially non-existent organisation known as Bureau 39 exists as an off-the-books division of the State Department, maintaining diplomatic relations with known alien nations, and collating information and intelligence from alien refugees and other sources, to brief the President regarding any potential threats from off-world. Rather than reveal the existence of a bureau that does not officially exist, agents for Bureau 39 usually identify themselves only as "from the State Department".
History
In 1947, signals intelligence officers working for the Army Security Agency detected radio bursts in the upper atmosphere, alerting them to the crash of an alien spacecraft near Roswell, New Mexico. The craft was Martian in origin, and the United States Army took the ship's lone pilot, J'onn J'onzz, into custody. Adopting a somewhat confrontational approach to their dealings with the Martian, the Army proved unable to obtain any useful or actionable information from their captive, and so the State Department petitioned for access to the prisoner, sending Darwin Jones to inspect the captive "foreign national". Taking a much more open-minded approach, Jones correctly inferred that J'onzz was telepathic, and that any attempts at duplicity or coercion were likely to be ineffective. Adopting a more open and benevolent approach, he insisted that J'onzz be extended at least basic rights - as a prisoner of war, if nothing else - and over time slowly began to build a rapport with the Martian.
J'onzz provided Jones with a warning in advance of the 1948 UFO incident near Aztec, New Mexico, sensing the arrival of a White Martian who had apparently detected his ship - no doubt as a result of tampering by Army researchers. The initial encounter was conducted by the ASA, who grossly underestimated their opponent. Against orders, Jones helped J'onzz to escape, and he was - barely - able to defeat the White Martian before any civilian lives were lost. Rather than use the opportunity to escape, J'onzz returned himself to Jones' custody. It was also his suggestion to fabricate and then discredit a false narrative in local newspapers, to help sell the official story that the crash had been a hoax.
As human technology advanced, the number of UFO sightings - both genuine and not - steadily increased, culminating in the Robertson Panel: a CIA investigation into a series of sightings over Washington, DC in the summer of 1952, corroborated by radar telemetry from several regional airports. While the panel was used to publically denounce and discredit such sightings, its findings led to newly-elected President Dwight D. Eisenhower creating what eventually became Bureau 39 shortly after his election in 1953. Darwin Jones was selected to lead, and while not an offiical bureau of the State Department, he was given the authority and clearance of an Assistant Secretary of State, reporting into the Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs.
During the Cold War, State Department interactions with Aquaman and Atlantis were conducted in secret by Bureau 39. This continued until the existence of Atlantis became a matter of public knowledge and record, and the responsibility was handed over to the specifically created Office of Atlantic Affairs.
With the creation of the Department of Energy in 1977, much of America's interaction with extraterrestrials and their technology was transferred from the Departments of Defense and State to the newly created A.R.G.U.S. agency. Bureau 39's role became one of diplomacy and oversight, using information gathered from alien refugees, and data retrieved from alien technology to construct a fragmented understanding of interstellar geography and politics. It has become common practice for newly arrived extraterrestrials to be interviewed by the Bureau - often by Jones himself, who remains the sole Assistant Secretary of the organisation's existence - to help expand on and update that understanding. The Bureau has - unofficially - also overseen diplomatic encounters with a handful of extraterrestrial governments, particularly with the Saturnians: a surviving offshoot of the Martian race still native to our solar system.
Hierarchy
Appendices
- The term "Bureau 39" comes originally from Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman.
- Darwin Jones and the organisation's role is modelled on Mister Smith, who appears in the "Invasion!" crossover of The Flash, Arrow, and Legends of Tomorrow.
