The US defense budget might be cut in times of strategic competition with Russia and China
WASHINGTON, (BM) – Because of the coronavirus pandemic, the United States may cut defense spending, which will lead to negative consequences in the development of American military potential, learned BulgarianMilitary.com citing Pentagon chief Mark Esper.
Read more: US Army spends $6 billion to purchase PAC-3 MSE missiles for Patriot systems
“In connection with the COVID-19 pandemic and huge public debt, it was likely that the defense budget would be lower in the future,” the minister said.
He said that the US defense budget should grow by 3-5% annually. This is due to the need to implement a national defense strategy.
According to Lawrence J. Korb “if Secretary Esper’s recommendation were followed, the request for FY 2021 would have jumped to close to $800 billion”. Many military people have supported Esper’s words about increasing the US defense budget, with some even calling for it to be a fact, among which Chief of Naval Operations Adm stands out. Michael Gilday and retired U.S. Air Force Lt. Gen. Dave Deptula, Dean of the Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies.
In fact, Congress has already asked each service to submit a priority list of programs that were not funded in the FY 2021 budget proposal.
According to the Center for American Progress “regardless of how much the United States—or any country for that matter—spends on defense, it cannot buy perfect security, and there will be broader nondefense budget trade-offs”
Esper noted that the US should not lose in “strategic competition” to China and Russia. In this regard, the Pentagon should regularly upgrade the country’s armed forces.
Read more: US Defence Executives Expected Governments to Boost Spending in New Technologies
According to others – spending trillions on ‘defense’ left America unprepared for real disasters – as the coronavirus pandemic.
***
Follow us everywhere and at any time. BulgarianMilitary.com has responsive design and you can open the page from any computer, mobile devices or web browsers. For more up-to-date news from us, follow our YouTube, Reddit, LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook pages. Do not miss the chance to subscribe to our newsletter. Subscribe and read our stories in News360App in AppStore or GooglePlay or in FeedlyApp in AppStore or GooglePlay
Subscribe to Google News
>>Be a reporter: Write and send your article.<<
BulgarianMilitary.com
Editorial team