---
tags:
  - Organization
  - Intelligence
  - USA
category: "U.S. Government"
summary: "Z Division is a Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory intelligence unit that serves as the authoritative U.S. government analyst for foreign nuclear weapons programs, with primary historical emphasis on Soviet and Israeli capabilities."
location: "Livermore, California"
---
Z Division is a special intelligence unit at the [[Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory|Livermore Laboratories]]. Its experts are considered the final word on proliferation issues, and it is responsible for analyzing foreign nuclear weapons, with an emphasis on Soviet weaponry. The most exhaustive analysis of [[Mordecai Vanunu]]'s statements and photographs was conducted by Z Division.[^1]

### Footnotes

[^1]: Hersh, Seymour M. *The Samson Option: Israel's Nuclear Arsenal and American Foreign Policy*. Random House, 1991. Chapter 15.