Who will split a new Pentagon’s budget

On February 2020, President Donald Trump proposed FY 2021 for nation security and Department of Defense (DoD). For the Pentagon was proposed $705.4 billion. The budget is slightly more (+0,1%) than in previous year but could be a seismic changes.

That sounds it is a bear proposal for DoD. For example money for buying military equipment were decreased to $137 billion compared $144 billion year ago. It was proposed to cut during next five years hundreds trusty beasts like fighters F-15 and F-16, attack plane A-10 and supersonic bomber B-1.

Looks like a dovish disarming but that is not the case. The new budget aimed at strengthening of the US’ strategic superiority. So, it was planned to spend about $30 billions at the nuclear modernization. General Dynamics Corporation could become a beneficiary as builder of COLUMBIA Class Ballistic Missile Submarine. The company could receive $4.4 billion in FY 2021. Northrop Grumman may have $2.8 billion on B-21 Long Range Strike Bomber. Also the budget proposes about $9 billion on nuclear command, control and communication, long-range missiles, ground based strategic deterrent. More than $20 billions goes at missile defeat and defense and $18 billions - at the space domain.

Overall, this may mean that a nuclear weapon will play a more important role. In this month Pentagon confirmed that on several American submarines were deployed new generation thermonuclear warheads W76-2. This is a new reality because those warheads have only a third power compared of the nuclear bomb that was dropped on Hiroshima. In 2001 the message was to nuke Tora Bora mountain caves by small nuclear warheads. Now the idea of nukes using can become a reality. Clear that the overkill cuts demand on conventional weapons.

The general trend must be considered. A human link in American military machine will shrink. At the final only one person or small group will control of military operations. In simple apprehension the President could give an order directly from laptop for thousands military robots or nuclear warhead.

It follows from the structure of future military forces and beneficiaries. There is DoD’s largest R&D request ($106.6 billion) in the new budget. DoD want to buy 79 Lockheed’s F-35 Joint Strike Fighters for $11.4 billion and this planes could play the role of command center for groups of unmanned strike aircrafts. More than $4 billion are planning to spend on AI, microelectronics and autonomy in FY2020.

So, in future the US military power will project by unmanned strike forces with AI and small tactical nukes for hard enemies. It must be considered for long term investments.