International Oversight Advisory

The International Oversight Advisory (IOA) is a civilian, international committee which oversees the Stargate program and Atlantis expedition and handles the international ramifications of both.

Originally, only the United States (and, since Season 4, Russia) were aware of the Stargate's existence; thus international complications remained few and manageable. The situation changed in 2003, when the two powers revealed the program to the British, French and Chinese governments (Canada was also informed shortly thereafter) in the hopes of rallying an international coalition to fight the threat of Anubis. This coalition became the Gate Alliance Treaty.

A year later, the Battle of Antarctica was fought and revealed the existence of a powerful Ancient weapon hidden on the frozen continent; because of international law, this led to disclosure of the Stargate to the nations involved in the Antarctic. With so many governments now aware of the Stargate and its ramifications, more international regulation and cooperation became necessary. The first initiative was the Atlantis expedition, whose members were provided by a number of nations. The expedition was controlled by the Atlantis Committee; at an unknown, later date, this organization became the IOA.

Since the Atlantis Expedition is an international project, it answers directly to the IOA; the SGC, a command under the U.S. Air Force, does not. However, the IOA has been financing the SGC ever since the Senate Appropriations Committee refused to do so in 2005, and therefore has a certain amount of leverage over it.

The exact number and identity of IOA member states is not known. It is known to include the five permanent members of the UN Security Council, the members of the Antarctic Treaty, and Canada.

Conflicts
Since the original disclosure of the Stargate program, the other members of the IOA have expressed displeasure at the fact that the Stargate remains in the hands of the U.S. Air Force. The Gate Alliance Treaty guarantees that all technologies brought back through the Stargate will be shared by all members; however, the United States has often interpreted this to apply only to non-military technology. This is a sore point with many member nations, but especially with China, which has threatened to leave the treaty and pursue interstellar exploration through their own means. So far, the Asgard support for the U.S. has managed to prevent too much dissent; since the Asgard are now dead, the conflicts inside the IOA could soon worsen.

Members
The following are some of the IOA's top members and the nations they represent.


 * Richard Woolsey - United States of America.
 * Colonel Chekov - Russian Federation.
 * Russel Chapman - United Kingdom.
 * Jean LaPierre - French Republic.
 * Chen Xiaoyi - People's Republic of China.

Criticism
Although Stargate Command is a military, U.S.-controlled organization while the Atlantis Expedition is civilian and international, both of them have a rather low opinion of the IOA, due to its lack of decisiveness, its tendency to meddle in situations of which it has no understanding, and its general focus on politics rather than the practical needs of their programs.

This is especially true for Elizabeth Weir, who as leader of the Expedition often finds herself questioned and undermined by the IOA. According to her, the IOA's inability to reach decisions during a crisis is simply a way to avoid taking responsibility; letting Weir make decisions gives them a scapegoat whenever things go wrong.