Trump to ask for $716b for national defence in 2019

Figure to cover Pentagon’s annual budget, spending on ongoing wars and maintenance of US nuclear arsenal

President Donald Trump is expected to ask for $716 billion (Dh3.72 trillion) in defence spending when he unveils his 2019 budget next month, a major increase that signals a shift away from concerns about rising deficits, US officials said.

The proposed budget is a victory for Defence Secretary Jim Mattis, who recently unveiled a strategy that proposes retooling the military to deter and, if necessary, fight a potential conflict with major powers such as China and Russia.

And it represents a setback for deficit hawks such as Mick Mulvaney, director of the Office of Management and Budget, who last year pressed for an increase in defence spending that could be offset by cuts to domestic programmes.

The $716 billion figure for 2019 would cover the Pentagon’s annual budget as well as spending on ongoing wars and the maintenance of the US nuclear arsenal. It would increase Pentagon spending by more than 7 per cent over the 2018 budget, which still has not passed through Congress.

The proposed budget would be a 13 per cent increase over 2017, when the US spent about $634 billion on defence. In the absence of a budget, spending continues at 2017 levels.

The proposed increase is “a huge deal,” said Mark Cancian, a defence analyst with the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS).

“It’s a big jump in defence and means that the Trump administration is putting resources against an extremely aggressive defence strategy.”

The Pentagon and the White House declined to comment on the president’s proposal, which has been circulating among the military services and in Congress.

Trump touted his 2018 defence budget as one of the largest in US history, but the proposal was seen as something of a disappointment inside the Pentagon and among defence hawks in Congress.

Many lawmakers have pushed for the military budget to increase far beyond what Trump proposed last year.

Trump sought $668 billion in spending for national defence in 2018, but Congress passed a bipartisan defence authorisation bill late last year that would direct roughly $700 billion to military spending.