Pentagon chief says plans to shift US military focus to Russia, China
Secretary of Defense Mark Esper has said he plans to shift the US military's focus away from the Middle East and toward countering what he characterized as "revisionist powers" of Russia and China.
Esper made the comment as he was outlining the Pentagon's strategic goals and priorities at an annual forum at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, California, on Saturday.
During his speech, the Pentagon chief said he was sticking to the national defense priorities set by his predecessor, Jim Mattis, and accused Moscow and Beijing of seeking "veto power" over the economic and security decisions of smaller countries.
Esper acknowledged that it would be difficult to move resources out of the Middle East to increase the focus on China and Russia.
"My ambition is and remains to look at how do we pull resources — resources being troops and equipment and you name it — from some regions and either return them to the United States or shift them to the Asia-Pacific region,” he said.
"That remains my ambition, but I have to deal with the world I have, and so I gotta make sure at the same time I deter conflict — in this case in the Middle East," Esper added.
The Pentagon chief said he wanted to have "sufficient forces" in the Middle East to make sure the US does not get into an armed conflict with Iran.
Esper also said he appreciated the recent military budget that would allow the Pentagon to address modernization and readiness shortfalls in the face of growing challenges from Russia and China.
The Pentagon chief, however, lamented the ongoing legislative resolutions that prevent utilization of the 2020 defense budget.
Esper said while the continuing resolutions allow the Department of Defense to expand its work on space and cyber, the department has $19 billion less than it should have and about 200 new programs have not been able to start.
"Continuing resolutions are killers for us," he said, adding that, “this must end” since the issue has led to canceled exercises, empty training slots and maintenance slowdowns.
"Every day under a continuing resolution is a day we're competing with Russia and China with one hand tied behind our back," Esper said.
Earlier in the week, Esper dismissed media reports that the US was considering sending up to 14,000 more troops to the Middle East.
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