Mike McCord, Pentagon Comptroller, announced that idea while delivering a speech about ERI, noting that although the exact number is still been discussed, it will be “a pretty significant increase.”
According to FT, the proposed measure will foremost serve as a response to Russia amid the Ukraine crisis, and secondly will “reassure” US allies doubting America’s devotion to their security.
Brian McKeon, Principal Deputy under the Secretary of Defense for Policy, claimed during a recent congressional hearing that the raise in the defense budget for operations in Europe will also be to counter Russia amid alleged violations by Moscow of an arms control treaty for medium-range missiles.
“There are a number of capabilities that we’re investing in, some of which were already on the books and some of which will be new or increased in the 2017 budget,” McKeon claimed. “They [the Russians] will see these activities and they will see them in our budget. And they will start to understand, we believe, that this response is not making them any more secure.”
The Pentagon budget plan is about to be presented in February, 2017.
Relations between Russia and the US deteriorated in the wake of the crisis Ukraine. Kiev authorities along with some western countries have accused Russia of meddling in the conflict in Donbass multiple times without presenting evidence. International monitoring groups have also not registered any violations from the Russian side on the Ukrainian border, including that of waging undeclared war.
Moscow, in turn, has many times claimed that Russia is not a party in the internal Ukrainian conflict or involved in the Donbass conflict and is interested in the resolution of the political and economic crisis in its neighboring country.
