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09/28/2006
Defense Spending
Some interesting facts on defense spending, from the Sept. 11,
2006, issue of Defense News, as reported by William Matthews.
Top Ten Spenders
[Estimated figures for 2005, except in the cases of Germany and
Italy (2003) sources: CIA, Stockholm International Peace
Research Institute]
1. United States $518.10 billon
2. China 81.47
3. France 45.00
4. Japan 44.31
5. United Kingdom 42.84
6. Germany 35.06
7. Italy 28.18
8. South Korea 21.05
9. Russia 21.00
10. India 19.04
You can see the U.S. handily outspends the next nine combined,
and if I carried it further, nineteen in a top twenty.
U.S. military spending is generally divided into two categories:
the “base” or “peacetime” budget, which is $463 billion, and
“emergency” funding for the wars, which the Bush
administration has signaled would be about $110 billion for
2007. Congress has thus far authorized $50 billion of the $110
billion, with the White House calling for the other $60 billion
sometime next spring.
[By Sept. 30, the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq will have cost
American taxpayers $406.7 billion.]
But you’ve probably been reading about various shortfalls that
the military still sees. Army chief of staff Peter Schoomaker, for
example, has been roiling the Pentagon in going against his own
boss, Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld.
Schoomaker says the Army faces a $17 billion shortfall in 2007
to replace equipment worn out or destroyed in combat. Under
current plans, the Army would also be short about $12 billion in
both 2008 and 2009.
In August, Air Force officials warned they are $8 billion short
for the period 2008 to 2013. And the Navy says it needs another
$3 to $4 billion to meet its goals. Both the Air Force and Navy
have plans to reduce forces substantially to free up money.
It isn’t just hardware that is so expensive. Personnel costs have
increased more than 45 percent since 2001, even after the job
cuts. Wartime recruiting bonuses could increase as high as
$40,000 and health care coverage for current servicemen,
families and retirees has doubled in the past five years to $36
billion.
But some in Congress, such as Republican Senators John
McCain and Jeff Sessions, aren’t about to stand still. McCain
warned, “History shows that there are probably going to be
reductions in defense spending and budgets,” adding that defense
contractors must get spiraling weapon costs under control. Of
course one of the big problems in cutting them is every program
has local implications.
Meanwhile, China’s military budget is growing at close to 13
percent a year and will exceed $100 billion by 2015. The new
mantra for their defense buyers is “zhixin xiquan,” or
“informatization,” the purchase of systems that improve or
complement existing weapons’ ability to provide information
dominance, i.e., information warfare capability. Interestingly,
China only has one electronic reconnaissance satellite at the
moment and it is desperately attempting to acquire advanced
Western radar technology. [Wendell Minnick / Defense News]
As for Russia, while its gross spending number may seem low, it
has actually quadrupled over the past five years, with most of it
going to bolster strategic nuclear forces. President Vladimir
Putin says this nuclear deterrence procurement is necessary to
power projection and the protection of Russian sovereignty.
Others point out, however, that Russia’s conventional combat
capabilities remain sorely lacking.
Furthermore, it’s easy to argue that Russia’s emphasis on its
strategic nuclear force, while maintaining its competitiveness
with the U.S., really does nothing to address the true threats to its
security. [Nabi Abdullaev / Defense News]
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Currently overseas in Bulgaria and Romania Hott Spotts will
return Oct. 12.
Brian Trumbore
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