The Trump administration has directed senior US military leaders to plan for potential defense budget cuts of up to eight percent annually, totaling about $290 billion over the next five years. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth emphasized the need for reductions in a memo, although specific areas for cuts were not detailed. The Pentagon’s 2025 budget stands at approximately $850 billion, which could shrink to $560 billion if cuts are fully enacted. The proposed reductions face opposition from the military and Congress, especially as Trump supports increasing the budget by $100 billion and pressing NATO members to boost spending.
Washington:
The Trump administration has instructed high-ranking US military officials to devise plans for substantial reductions that could cut the defense budget by eight percent each year, translating to approximately $290 billion over the next five years, according to reports from US media on Wednesday.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has directed the Pentagon to formulate these significant cuts, as reported by The Washington Post, referencing a memo.
The Pentagon’s budget for 2025 stands at about $850 billion. Lawmakers from both parties agree that such extensive funding is essential to counter threats, particularly from China and Russia.
If these cuts are fully realized, they would lower the budget by tens of billions annually, bringing it down to around $560 billion by the conclusion of the five-year period.
The report did not specify where in the largest military budget cuts would occur, but a previous report by the Post indicated that junior civilian employees, rather than uniformed personnel, would be affected.
This development — following Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency reportedly visiting the Pentagon last week — is expected to face significant opposition from both military leaders and Congress.
On Wednesday, Trump expressed support for a House of Representatives bill aimed at increasing the defense budget by $100 billion — a proposal that stands in stark contrast to the cuts proposed by Hegseth.
The intended reductions also contradict the calls from Trump and Hegseth for NATO allies to elevate their military expenditures to five percent of GDP each year.
– ‘Revive the warrior ethos’ –
The United States currently allocates about 3.4 percent of its GDP to defense, and reaching the five percent target would be even more challenging if the Pentagon’s budget is reduced.
The stock prices of major US defense firms reacted negatively to the news, with Lockheed Martin briefly falling before rebounding, Northrop Grumman dropping nearly two percent, and Palantir closing down by more than 10 percent.
Hegseth’s memo indicated that the proposed budget cuts must be outlined by February 24 and that there are 17 categories Trump wishes to exempt, including operations at the US-Mexico border and the modernization of nuclear weapons and missile defense systems.
It also calls for funding for regional headquarters such as Indo-Pacific Command and Space Command.
However, other key commands, such as European Command, which has been pivotal in shaping US strategy during the conflict in Ukraine, in addition to Africa Command and Central Command — which manages operations in the Middle East — were not included in the list, as reported by the Post.
The Defense Department “must act urgently to revive the warrior ethos, rebuild our military, and reestablish deterrence,” Hegseth stated in the memo dated Tuesday, according to the Post.
“Our budget will fund the military force we require, eliminate unnecessary defense spending, reject excessive bureaucracy, and drive actionable reform including progress on the audit,” he reportedly added.
US President Donald Trump has pledged to cut government spending and terminate US support for Ukraine amid its conflict with the Russian invasion.
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