Download Page as PDF Expand All Collapse All Extent 154 folders, approximately 13,365 pages Summary This collection contains the chronological, or chron, files of Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for Defense Policy and Arms Control Robert Bell from March 1998 through the end of his tenure on the NSC in July 1999. Many NSC directorates maintained chron files as part of their record keeping. They were maintained in date order and consist of records on which that directorate or staff member gave advice or had some role in drafting. The records in this collection include memos related to policy and legislation, approvals for Significant Military Exercises, and flag officer nominations. Scope and Content Note The materials in FOIA 2026-0152-F are a selective body of documents responsive to the topic of the FOIA. Researchers should consult the archivist about related material. This collection is the third and final segment of a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request for the Chron Files of Robert Bell, Special Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs and Senior Director for Defense Policy and Arms Control on the National Council (NSC). Many NSC directorates and staffers maintained Chronological, or Chron, files as part of their record keeping. These files are maintained in date order and consist of records on which that directorate or staff member gave advice or held some role in drafting. The material in this FOIA segment dates from March 1998 to the end of Robert Bell’s tenure at the NSC in July 1999. The Defense Policy and Arms Control directorate of the NSC during the Clinton administration dealt primarily with issues related to the United States military and with non-proliferation issues. These include discussions of policy related to all branches of the armed services, as well as international treaties and policies including those related to the Ottawa Convention on landmines, the Conventional Test Ban Treaty, the Chemical Weapons Convention, and the Anti-Ballistic Missile treaty. Much of the collection deals with NSC approvals for Significant Military Exercises and nominations to the US military office corps. The collection also includes several Legislative Referral Memorandum (LRM) on proposed legislation or testimony to be given before congressional committees. There is also correspondence related to meetings of and nominations to the National Security Telecommunications Advisory Committee (NTSC). Additionally, there are many flag officer nomination approvals in this collection. The records also deal with ongoing major events in 1998 and 1999. These include the NATO military intervention in Kosovo, particularly concerning the 3 American service members captured during that conflict. There are also records that deal with the aftermath of the February 1998 Cavalese cable car crash involving a U.S. Marine Corps aircraft. For the Chron Files dating from January 1993 to February 1998, the researcher should consult previously released Segments 1 and 2 of this FOIA request. Many of the records produced for this FOIA contain Personally Identifiable Information (PII) which resulted in closures related to personal privacy. This is particularly true for the flag officer nomination approvals. Biographical Note Robert Bell had a long and distinguished career in the service of the United States. He was a veteran of the United States Air Force and served on the staff of the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, the Senate Committee on Armed Service, and Senator Samuel Nunn. He joined the NSC staff in January 1993 and worked there until July 1999 when he was appointed as North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Assistant Secretary General for Defense Investment. Robert Bell died in September 2024. Record Type Textual System of Arrangement Records that are responsive to this FOIA request were found in these collection areas—Clinton Presidential Records: White House Staff and Office File. Staff and Office files were maintained at the folder level by staff members within their individual offices and document all levels of administration activity. Staff and Office files are processed at the folder level, that is, individual documents are not selected and removed from a folder for processing. While this method maintains folder integrity, it frequently results in the incidental processing of documents that are not wholly responsive to the subject area. Access Collection is open to all researchers. Access to Clinton Presidential Records is governed by the Presidential Records Act (PRA) (44 U.S.C. Chapter 22, as amended) and the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) (5 U.S.C. 552, as amended) and therefore records may be restricted in whole or in part in accordance with legal exemptions. Copyright Documents in this collection that were prepared by officials of the United States government as part of their official duties are in the public domain. Researchers are advised to consult the copyright law of the United States (17 U.S.C. Chapter 1) which governs the making of photocopies or other reproductions of copyrighted material. Provenance Official records of William Jefferson Clinton’s presidency are housed at the Clinton Presidential Library and administered by the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) under the provisions of the Presidential Records Act (PRA). Processed by Staff Archivist, 2026. Previously restricted materials are added as they are released. Last Modified Date 2026-09-29 Container List Box 1 Clinton Presidential Records: White House Staff and Office Files National Security Council Defense Policy and Arms Control Bell, Robert Chron Files - March 1998 #1 [1] [OA/ID 1158] Chron Files - March 1998 #1 [2] [OA/ID 1158] Chron Files - March 1998 #1 [3] [OA/ID 1158] Chron Files - March 1998 #1 [4] [OA/ID 1158] Chron Files - March 1998 #2 [1] [OA/ID 1158] Chron Files - March 1998 #2 [2] [OA/ID 1158] Chron Files - March 1998 #2 [3] [OA/ID 1158] Chron Files - March 1998 #2 [4] [OA/ID 1158] Chron Files - April 1998 #1 [1] [OA/ID 1158] Box 2 Chron Files - April 1998 #1 [2] [OA/ID 1158] Chron Files - April 1998 #1 [3] [OA/ID 1158] Chron Files - April 1998 #1 [4] [OA/ID 1158] Chron Files - April 1998 #2 [1] [OA/ID 1158] Chron Files - April 1998 #2 [2] [OA/ID 1158] Chron Files - April 1998 #2 [3] [OA/ID 1158] Chron Files - April 1998 #2 [4] [OA/ID 1158] Chron Files - April 1998 #2 [5] [OA/ID 1158] Chron Files - April 1998 #2 [6] [OA/ID 1158] Box 3 Chron Files - May 1998 #1 [1] [OA/ID 1158] Chron Files - May 1998 #1 [2] [OA/ID 1158] Chron Files - May 1998 #1 [3] [OA/ID 1158] Chron Files - May 1998 #1 [4] [OA/ID 1158] Chron Files - May 1998 #2 [1] [OA/ID 1158] Chron Files - May 1998 #2 [2] [OA/ID 1158] Chron Files - May 1998 #2 [3] [OA/ID 1158] Chron Files - May 1998 #2 [4] [OA/ID 1158] Chron Files - May 1998 #2 [5] [OA/ID 1158] Box 4 Chron Files - June 1998 #1 [1] [OA/ID 1271] Chron Files - June 1998 #1 [2] [OA/ID 1271] Chron Files - June 1998 #1 [3] [OA/ID 1271] Chron Files - June 1998 #1 [4] [OA/ID 1271] Chron Files - June 1998 #1 [5] [OA/ID 1271] Chron Files - June 1998 #1 [6] [OA/ID 1271] Chron Files - June 1998 #2 [1] [OA/ID 1271] Chron Files - June 1998 #2 [2] [OA/ID 1271] Chron Files - June 1998 #2 [3] [OA/ID 1271] Chron Files - June 1998 #2 [4] [OA/ID 1271] Box 5 Chron Files - June 1998 #2 [5] [OA/ID 1271] Chron Files - June 1998 #2 [6] [OA/ID 1271] Chron Files - July 1998 #1 [1] [OA/ID 1271] Chron Files - July 1998 #1 [2] [OA/ID 1271] Chron Files - July 1998 #1 [3] [OA/ID 1271] Chron Files - July 1998 #1 [4] [OA/ID 1271] Chron Files - July 1998 #2 [1] [OA/ID 1589] Chron Files - July 1998 #2 [2] [OA/ID 1589] Chron Files - July 1998 #2 [3] [OA/ID 1589] Chron Files - July 1998 #2 [4] [OA/ID 1589] Box 6 Chron Files - August 1998 #1 [1] [OA/ID 1589] Chron Files - August 1998 #1 [2] [OA/ID 1589] Chron Files - August 1998 #1 [3] [OA/ID 1589] Chron Files - August 1998 #1 [4] [OA/ID 1589] Chron Files - August 1998 #2 [1] [OA/ID 1589] Chron Files - August 1998 #2 [2] [OA/ID 1589] Chron Files - August 1998 #2 [3] [OA/ID 1589] Chron Files - September 1998 #1 [1] [OA/ID 1589] Chron Files - September 1998 #1 [2] [OA/ID 1589] Box 7 Chron Files - September 1998 #1 [3] [OA/ID 1589] Chron Files - September 1998 #1 [4] [OA/ID 1589] Chron Files - September 1998 #2 [1] [OA/ID 1589] Chron Files - September 1998 #2 [2] [OA/ID 1589] Chron Files - September 1998 #2 [3] [OA/ID 1589] Chron Files - September 1998 #2 [4] [OA/ID 1589] Chron Files - October 1998 #1 [1] [OA/ID 1589] Chron Files - October 1998 #1 [2] [OA/ID 1589] Box 8 Chron Files - October 1998 #1 [3] [OA/ID 1589] Chron Files - October 1998 #1 [4] [OA/ID 1589] Chron Files - October 1998 #2 [1] [OA/ID 1589] Chron Files - October 1998 #2 [2] [OA/ID 1589] Chron Files - October 1998 #2 [3] [OA/ID 1589] Chron Files - October 1998 #2 [4] [OA/ID 1589] Chron Files - October 1998 #2 [5] [OA/ID 1589] Chron Files - October 1998 #2 [6] [OA/ID 1589] Chron Files - November 1998 #1 [1] [OA/ID 1763] Chron Files - November 1998 #1 [2] [OA/ID 1763] Chron Files - November 1998 #1 [3] [OA/ID 1763] Chron Files - November 1998 #2 [1] [OA/ID 1763] Box 9 Chron Files - November 1998 #2 [2] [OA/ID 1763] Chron Files - December 1998 #1 [1] [OA/ID 1763] Chron Files - December 1998 #1 [2] [OA/ID 1763] Chron Files - December 1998 #1 [3] [OA/ID 1763] Chron Files - December 1998 #2 [1] [OA/ID 1763] Chron Files - December 1998 #2 [2] [OA/ID 1763] Chron Files - December 1998 #2 [3] [OA/ID 1763] Chron Files - December 1998 #2 [4] [OA/ID 1763] Chron Files - January 1999 #1 [1] [OA/ID 1763] Chron Files - January 1999 #1 [2] [OA/ID 1763] Chron Files - January 1999 #2 [OA/ID 1763] Box 10 Chron Files - February 1999 #1 [1] [OA/ID 1763] Chron Files - February 1999 #1 [2] [OA/ID 1763] Chron Files - February 1999 #1 [3] [OA/ID 1763] Chron Files - February 1999 #2 [1] [OA/ID 1763] Chron Files - February 1999 #2 [2] [OA/ID 1763] Chron Files - February 1999 #2 [3] [OA/ID 1763] Chron Files - February 1999 #2 [4] [OA/ID 1763] Chron Files - March 1999 #1 [1] [OA/ID 1763] Chron Files - March 1999 #1 [2] [OA/ID 1763] Chron Files - March 1999 #1 [3] [OA/ID 1763] Chron Files - March 1999 #1 [4] [OA/ID 1763] Chron Files - March 1999 #1 [5] [OA/ID 1763] Chron Files - March 1999 #1 [6] [OA/ID 1763] Box 11 Chron Files - March 1999 #2 [1] [OA/ID 1763] Chron Files - March 1999 #2 [2] [OA/ID 1763] Chron Files - March 1999 #2 [3] [OA/ID 1763] Chron Files - March 1999 #2 [4] [OA/ID 1763] Chron Files - March 1999 #2 [5] [OA/ID 1763] Chron Files - March 1999 #2 [6] [OA/ID 1763] Chron Files - April 1999 #1 [1] [OA/ID 1701] Chron Files - April 1999 #1 [2] [OA/ID 1701] Chron Files - April 1999 #1 [3] [OA/ID 1701] Chron Files - April 1999 #1 [4] [OA/ID 1701] Chron Files - April 1999 #1 [5] [OA/ID 1701] Chron Files - April 1999 #1 [6] [OA/ID 1701] Box 12 Chron Files - April 1999 #2 [1] [OA/ID 1701] Chron Files - April 1999 #2 [2] [OA/ID 1701] Chron Files - April 1999 #2 [3] [OA/ID 1701]