This past week, President Obama announced a new US defense strategy that was formulated to slash the military budget in a responsible and balanced way.
However, despite the massive budget cuts ($450 billion), Obama believes the strategy will help maintain US military preeminence.
“As commander in chief, I am determined that we meet the challenges of this moment responsibly and that we emerge even stronger in a manner that preserves American global leadership, maintains our military superiority and keeps faith with our troops, military families and veterans,” Obama said.
Obama also talked a bit about military successes with the death of Osama bin Laden and the withdrawal of forces from Iraq and from other areas in the Middle East.
As military personnel return home from the battlefield, the Pentagon will begin to shift its focus to other areas such as the Asia-Pacific region.
Obama also emphasized that the new defense strategy will not abandon the areas that the US has fought so hard for in the last ten years. Indeed, America will work to maintain the progress made in the Middle East, Central Asia, and North Africa.
”We are supporting political and economic reform and deepening partnership as to ensure regional security,” Obama added.
As expected, the president also specifically highlighted military areas slated for increased investment, including intelligence gathering, countering weapons of mass destruction, and the ability to prevail in all domains – including cyber space. To be sure, the threat posed from hackers continues to grow, and much of the hacking activity is believed to originate in China and Russia.
“Most importantly, we will keep faith with our troops, military families and veterans who have borne the burden of a decade of war and who make our military the best in the world,” the president said.