US budget request reflects counter-insurgency emphasis

The US Department of Defense (DoD) released its Fiscal Year 2011 (FY11) budget request on 1 February, calling for a modest increase in the US military's baseline budget, as well as a continued commitment to acquisition reform and a strategic shift toward counter-insurgency.

Secretary of Defense Robert Gates requested a baseline budget of USD549 billion, an increase of USD18 billion – or 3.4 per cent – in comparison to the FY10 budget, during his budget briefing at the Pentagon.

Along with that request, Gates asked for USD159 billion to fund Overseas Contingency Operations (OCO) in Iraq and Afghanistan in FY11.

Separately, Gates also said he will ask the US Congress to approve by the spring his USD33 billion FY10 supplemental funding request to meet the estimated cost of fulfilling the new strategy in Afghanistan, which involves boosting forces by 30,000.

"I'm comfortable that the fiscal year '10 supplemental and the fiscal year '11 overseas contingency operations requests provide our troops what they'll need to complete a responsible drawdown in Iraq and execute the president's strategy in Afghanistan and Pakistan," said Admiral Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, at the briefing.