Biden wants $813 billion for defense as Ukraine crisis raises alarm
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[March 29, 2022]
By Mike Stone
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Joe
Biden's record peacetime national defense budget request of $813 billion
boasts a 4.6% pay raise for troops and the largest research and
development budget in history, as Russian aggression in Ukraine spurs
demands for more military spending.
Biden's request earmarks $773 billion for the Pentagon, and eclipses the
budget requests by former President Donald Trump. An additional $40
billion is earmarked for defense-related programs at the Federal Bureau
of Investigation, Department of Energy and other agencies, bringing the
national security budget to $813 billion, up from $778 billion last
year.
The Russian invasion of Ukraine has driven recent support for greater
defense spending among Democrats and Republicans who see a growing
national security and foreign policy threat from Russian leader Vladimir
Putin. The budget increases funds for the Pentagon's European Deterrence
Initiative by $360 million to a total of $4.2 billion.
At the same time, the budget slows the Department of Defense's
purchasing of the stealthy F-35 fighter jet, the Pentagon's largest
weapons program, after Air Force leaders complained that technological
improvements to the jet's hardware were too slow.
Budget talks between Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and the White House
coalesced around the $773 billion early on, defense officials said.
Reuters first reported the figure in February.
Among the top priorities for this budget are shipbuilding, developing
capabilities in space, missile warning and modernizing the nuclear
"triad" of ballistic missile submarines, bombers and land-based
missiles.
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U.S. President Joe Biden speaks during an event at the Royal Castle,
amid Russia's invasion of Ukraine, in Warsaw, Poland March 26, 2022.
REUTERS/Evelyn Hockstein
Only 61 F-35 jets made by Lockheed
Martin Corp were requested by the Pentagon, down from a request of
85 last year, though experts believe Congress will increase that
figure during the budget process.
The budget would benefit the biggest U.S. defense contractors
including Lockheed, Raytheon Technologies Corp, Northrop Grumman
Corp and General Dynamics Corp.
The 2023 fiscal budget, which starts on Oct. 1, boasts the
Pentagon's largest research and development budget ever, with $130
billion earmarked to develop new weaponry like hypersonic missiles
to fight any potential future wars against China and Russia.
Some of that investment is funded by retiring equipment like
Littoral Combat Ships that are expensive to operate, and older
planes like A-10 Warthogs, which the U.S. withdrawal from
Afghanistan last year has made less essential because they are
vulnerable to more sophisticated enemies.
The national defense budget request crafted during Trump's final
year in office was for $752.9 billion. Congress then increased that
amount by $25 billion, ultimately landing at $778 billion for fiscal
2022.
(Reporting by Mike Stone in Washington; Editing by Matthew Lewis)
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