US Defense Budget Decreases by 0.4% When Adjusted for Inflation

Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Milli: "A Difficult Choice for Countries Economically Impacted by COVID-19"

Lloyd Austin, U.S. Secretary of Defense
Photo by AP Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Byung-hee] An analysis has been raised that the U.S. defense budget for the next fiscal year (October 2021 to September 2022) has effectively decreased when considering inflation.

U.S. President Joe Biden is expected to unveil his first fiscal year budget proposal on the 28th (local time). While a $6 trillion budget is anticipated, the Department of Defense budget is reported to be $715 billion.

This represents a 1.6% increase compared to the $704 billion spent in the current fiscal year. Bloomberg News reported that when adjusted for inflation, the defense budget for the next fiscal year actually decreases by 0.4% in real terms.

Other departments outside the Department of Defense, such as the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Department of Energy, also have budgets related to national security. The total of these budgets is $38 billion, and combined with the Department of Defense budget, the total national security-related budget amounts to $753 billion. This too represents only a 1.7% increase compared to the current fiscal year.

Accordingly, a tussle is expected between the Biden administration and the opposition Republican Party. During former President Donald Trump's tenure, the Department of Defense budget growth rate was around 3-5%.

Trump was reportedly planning to increase the Department of Defense budget to $722 billion for the 2022 fiscal year if he had succeeded in being re-elected. Compared to this, the Biden administration’s defense budget is $7 billion less.

Republicans have criticized the defense budget as insufficient. Republican House Representative Hal Rogers pointed out, "Because the defense budget is not increasing significantly, it will become more difficult to prepare for China's threats in the South China Sea and Taiwan."

Mark Milley, Chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff [Photo by AP Yonhap News]

In response, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin stated that the $715 billion Department of Defense budget is sufficient to address threats from the rising China, climate change, and risks arising from the COVID-19 pandemic.

General Mark Milley, Chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, said, "Although the defense budget reflected in the next fiscal year has not increased significantly, it is a treasure entrusted to us by the people, and we will use it carefully to serve the best interests of the United States." Milley also added, "The next fiscal year defense budget reflects difficult choices made by the nation amid the economic impact of COVID-19."

Foreign media reported that the next fiscal year U.S. defense budget includes investment plans for troop readiness, the space industry, nuclear weapons technology, and the "Pacific Deterrence Initiative (PDI)." The PDI aims to strengthen U.S. military readiness by supporting missile, satellite, and radar systems in the Indo-Pacific region. The U.S. Department of Defense is reportedly pursuing plans to secure funding by disposing of costly old equipment such as four littoral combat ships and A-10 attack aircraft.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.