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The fundamental forces shaping the US military for a long time have been the extended reach and challenges of extended operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. Today, it faces new budgetary pressures under a political focus on deficit reduction and domestic priorities. Here’s an analysis of the international relations by our Associate Editor, Navodita. We begin a new weekly column, every Saturday, this week. A Different Truths exclusive.
The recent US Navy plane crash off Okinawa coast that left eleven people dead has sent waves of
It’s been a difficult year for the Navy in the western North Pacific following a spate of incidents – most involving ships assigned to the East Asia-based US 7th Fleet – that included the death of 17 sailors. Earlier, it was USS Fitzgerald and USS John S. McCain and now it’s USS Ronald Reagan. The Navy has launched multiple investigations and reviews in the wake of this year’s accidents.
Meanwhile, the US military has also banned the consumption of alcohol among its troops in the wake of this accident. The military said its forces on Okinawa must stay on base or at home. The crash is likely to renew resentment over the US military’s presence on Okinawa. Last year, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe
The US military, despite downsizing after the Cold War, maintains global reach, missions, tasks, and considerations. The United States Armed Forces consists of the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force and Coast Guard. President Trump remains the Commander-in-Chief of the US Armed Forces and forms military policy with the U.S. Department of Defense and U.S. Department of Homeland Security, both deferral executive departments, acting as the principal organs by which military policy has carried out.
The fundamental forces shaping the US military for a long time have been the extended reach and challenges of extended operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. Today, it faces new budgetary pressures under a political focus on deficit reduction and domestic priorities. There were three notable changes in the US military between 1996 and 2015 – precision munitions, especially air-delivered ones, had become the norm rather than the exception. Precision-guided munitions constituted only 7 percent of the air-to-surface weapons employed in the 1991 Gulf War but 70 percent of those used during the ‘major combat’ phase of Operation Iraqi Freedom in 2003.
Second, the Air Force and Navy have benefitted from improvements in key platforms. F-22 “Raptor”
Through 2017, the US military will continue to evolve, but the likely changes will be evolutionary rather than revolutionary. F-35 schedules continue to slide, and although the US Government Accountability Office predicts that more than 350 aircraft will be delivered to the U.S. Air Force, Navy, and Marine Corps by 2017, it does not expect that the aircraft will be ready for initial operational testing by 2017. At the same time, further shrinkage in the Air Force fighter inventory can be expected.
With the recent and most ambitious five-nation trip by President Trump to Asia, US is seeking not just new trade deals with Asian partners but also seeking a diplomatic pressure against North Korea by these nations. Despite the self-proclaimed triumph, the success of Trump’s trip actually depends on what he – and China, North Korea, South Korea and Japan, among others – do in the months or years ahead.
As far as Asia is concerned, Washington has begun to focus more heavily on US difference capabilities in Asia – particularly the challenge posed by Chinese power – in shaping policies, plan, and procurements. The clearest and most comprehensive public statement to this effect can be found in a January 2012 DoD document, ‘Sustaining U.S. Global Leadership: Priorities for 21st Century Defense’. The document highlights the mix of ‘evolving challenges and opportunities in Asia and states, “while the U.S. military will continue to contribute to global security, we will of necessity rebalance toward the Asia-Pacific region.”
©Navodita Pande
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