US defence budget boosts focus on current extremist threats

Feb 1, 2010, 22:29 GMT

Washington - US President Barack Obama Monday proposed spending 708 billion dollars on defence for fiscal 2011 in a modest increase over the previous year.

The budget focuses spending more money to address current threats, including extremism and guerilla warfare, which was highlighted by the reviews by the Pentagon on Monday outlining future threats. The reviews are required by Congress every four years.

Obama is seeking 549 billion dollars in the Pentagon's base budget for fiscal 2011 that begins October 1, an increase of 3.4 per cent from 2010. He is also seeking 159 billion dollars to fund the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

There is an additional 33 billion dollars in a supplemental request for the current year's troop surge in Afghanistan. Obama announced the buildup of 30,000 troops in December.

The budget request did not include any major cuts to weapons systems, beyond cutting the C-17 cargo plane. Obama last year made major changes to defence spending by going against the wishes of Congress and ending the F-22 Raptor fighter jet programme.

He also stuck with plans to slash the building of a second, alternative engine for the F-35 Lightening fighter.

The budget proposal increases the budget for weapons spending from 104.8 billion dollars in 2010 to 112.8 billion dollars in 2011. Money for research and development would decrease from 80 billion dollars to 76 billion dollars.

Obama's plan would pump more money into unmanned airplanes heavily relied upon in the war on terrorism, particularly along the Afghan- Pakistan border, as well as on helicopters, and on bolstering defences against cyber and electronic warfare.