Defense Budget and Appropriations

Debt ceiling agreement locks in Biden’s proposed defense budget

The White House and House Republicans reached a debt ceiling agreement that increases the defense budget by 3.3% while cutting non-defense spending.

27 hours ago

Andrew Hunter speaks at a panel discussion on "strengthening alliances and partnerships through defense cooperation" at the Center for Strategic and International Studies on March 16, 2018. Hunter, director of the defense-industrial initiatives group and a senior fellow in the international security program at CSIS, is President Joe Biden's nominee for assistant Air Force secretary for acquisition, technology and logistics. Photo courtesy of CSIS.

Debt breach could damage defense industry, Air Force official says

A debt ceiling breach would be "uncharted territory," Andrew Hunter said — but could do "profound damage" to the defense industry.

11 days ago

Budget

‘Devastating’ debt default threatens troop pay, defense programs

If Congress fails to raise the debt ceiling, payments to troops, veterans and defense contractors could cease as soon as June.

Give the Defense Innovation Unit a slice of Ukraine funds

Calls to make Ukraine a laboratory and a testing ground for our own weapons and platforms are the right ones.

14 days ago

Defense budget bill hit with delay over debt ceiling fight

The House’s markup of the fiscal 2024 National Defense Authorization Act — initially scheduled for this week — is now postponed.

3 weeks ago

Protect the force with timely and robust readiness funding

The safety and readiness of the force is too important to get lost in clever language about decision frameworks and assessment tools.

3 weeks ago

Marine Corps wants $13M for automated war zone air delivery drones

The systems are designed to carry payloads of up to 150 pounds over distances of up to nine miles in containers secured underneath.

3 weeks ago

Marines want 31 amphibious ships. The Pentagon disagrees. Now what?

The Navy has 31 amphibious ships — what the Corps considers the bare minimum it needs — but the Pentagon plans to shrink the fleet in fiscal 2024.

4 weeks ago

An MV-22 Osprey from the “Ugly Angels” of Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron 362 flies by the aircraft carrier Nimitz in the South China Sea, Feb. 11, 2023.

Is America postured for a fight in the Indo-Pacific?

To achieve the transformative effect needed to bolster deterrence against China, the Biden administration needs to keep its foot on the gas.

4 weeks ago

U.S. forces practice convoy training with the Danab Brigade in Somalia, May 4, 2021.

House rejects Gaetz pitch to withdraw all US forces from Somalia

The House voted against withdrawing U.S. troops from Somalia, and an AFRICOM unfunded priorities list requests additional funding to review troop levels.

5 weeks ago

Will German purchase of Boeing Chinooks relieve pressure on US Army?

The U.S. Army is hoping the latest foreign military sale of the CH-47 will alleviate pressure to buy the latest variant for its own active duty force.

5 weeks ago

Congressional China panel preps proposals to rapidly arm Taiwan

In an exclusive interview, Mike Gallagher previewed some of the Taiwan provisions that his China-focused panel is drafting for inclusion in a defense bill.

5 weeks ago

Beyond ship counts: Training, readiness and capabilities ‘count’ too

While procurement numbers and fleet size are important, they are not a proxy for assessing warfighting prowess.

5 weeks ago

Why the US Navy needs dedicated command ships

Suggestions that there is no need for a sea-based battle staff platform fly in the face of Cold War and recent history.

5 weeks ago

The US military must move beyond defense-reform theater

Zealous reformers continue to over-focus on weapons buys when hardware is increasingly the commodity.

6 weeks ago

Army warns it could lose $5.3 billion if Congress fails to pass budget

The Army won't be able to use over $5 billion it needs to modernize its force or give its troops planned raises if Congress doesn't pass an FY24 budget.

6 weeks ago

The Capitol in Washington, D.C., is seen Nov. 4, 2022.

Five scenarios for the FY24 defense budget

The political fight over the U.S. federal debt ceiling makes the outcome for the fiscal 2024 defense budget difficult to predict. But we'll still try.

7 weeks ago

What’s in the defense wish lists? Unraveling FY24 unfunded priorities

Given the political drama stemming from the FY24 budget request, it is worth investigating what’s not in the president's submission.

7 weeks ago

Guided-missile cruiser Chancellorsville conducts routine underway operations in the South China Sea, Nov. 29, 2022.

Sea power is essential to countering communist China

China is on a fast track to displace America as the world’s dominant naval power.

7 weeks ago

Budget

Defense News offers premier news and analysis about budget and appropriations affecting defense programs to keep military and industry decision-makers informed.

The White House and House Republicans reached a debt ceiling agreement that increases the defense budget by 3.3% while cutting non-defense spending.

A debt ceiling breach would be "uncharted territory," Andrew Hunter said — but could do "profound damage" to the defense industry.

If Congress fails to raise the debt ceiling, payments to troops, veterans and defense contractors could cease as soon as June.

Calls to make Ukraine a laboratory and a testing ground for our own weapons and platforms are the right ones.

The House’s markup of the fiscal 2024 National Defense Authorization Act — initially scheduled for this week — is now postponed.

The safety and readiness of the force is too important to get lost in clever language about decision frameworks and assessment tools.

The systems are designed to carry payloads of up to 150 pounds over distances of up to nine miles in containers secured underneath.

The Navy has 31 amphibious ships — what the Corps considers the bare minimum it needs — but the Pentagon plans to shrink the fleet in fiscal 2024.

To achieve the transformative effect needed to bolster deterrence against China, the Biden administration needs to keep its foot on the gas.

The House voted against withdrawing U.S. troops from Somalia, and an AFRICOM unfunded priorities list requests additional funding to review troop levels.

The U.S. Army is hoping the latest foreign military sale of the CH-47 will alleviate pressure to buy the latest variant for its own active duty force.

In an exclusive interview, Mike Gallagher previewed some of the Taiwan provisions that his China-focused panel is drafting for inclusion in a defense bill.

While procurement numbers and fleet size are important, they are not a proxy for assessing warfighting prowess.

Suggestions that there is no need for a sea-based battle staff platform fly in the face of Cold War and recent history.

Zealous reformers continue to over-focus on weapons buys when hardware is increasingly the commodity.

The Army won't be able to use over $5 billion it needs to modernize its force or give its troops planned raises if Congress doesn't pass an FY24 budget.

The political fight over the U.S. federal debt ceiling makes the outcome for the fiscal 2024 defense budget difficult to predict. But we'll still try.

Given the political drama stemming from the FY24 budget request, it is worth investigating what’s not in the president's submission.

China is on a fast track to displace America as the world’s dominant naval power.