The Heritage Foundation released its annual assessment of America's military power this week, and the results were dire. The 2024 U.S. Military Strength Index indicates that the country's overall military posture “should be rated 'weak.'”
“This is despite years of prolonged deployments, underfunding, unclear priorities, wildly changing security policies, extremely poor discipline in program execution, and rapidly increasing threats to U.S. interests. This is an inevitable result of a serious lack of seriousness in the national security system as a whole.
evaluation.
This is the first and only time the military has received a “weak” rating.
last year.
While this weakness has been building for years, a key strength of the United States is
exhausted In the wake of Russia's invasion of Ukraine and Hamas' terrorist attacks on Israel.
In its assessment, Heritage measured America's military power in terms of operational capabilities, modernization capabilities, and readiness to accomplish assigned missions. Inspectors also took into account the capabilities and actions of America's adversaries. Existing Alliance. Regional political stability. Condition of key infrastructure. And the presence of the US military.
Heritage magazine rated the Air Force's capabilities and capabilities as “marginal,” but noted that its readiness was “very weak.”
The assessment suggested that the Air Force needs 1,200 combat-coded active-duty fighters to respond to multiple major conflicts. Currently, the branch reportedly only has 897 aircraft ready, or 64 percent of its otherwise optimal bomber inventory.
At the end of 2022, the Government Accountability Office released a Weapons System Sustainment report that found that for most of the period from 2011 to 2021, Air Force aircraft involved in U.S. air superiority “achieved annual mission capability goals.” revealed that only a handful of
In addition to problems with the fleet, the assessment showed a shortage of pilots.
“The Air Force does not have a fighter fleet with the readiness, capability, and reliability levels necessary to confront its competitors, and readiness continues to decline,” the report said. ing.
Meanwhile, the Army's readiness rating was rated as “very strong'' but “weak'' in terms of capability and “marginal'' in terms of capability. It is believed that the population is aging faster than modernization and that it continues to struggle with recruiting human resources.
The Navy was rated “very weak” for capability, “marginal” for capability, and “weak” for readiness. A combat power fleet of 400 manned ships is reportedly needed to meet expectations, but in reality there is only a combat power fleet of 297 ships. Worse, its former technological superiority The growth rate has been slowed by age and the advances of competitors such as China and Russia.
Space Force received an overall rating of “Marginal.”
America's nuclear capabilities received an overall “marginal” rating when considered individually.
Although the Marine Corps was rated as “strong” overall, Heritage indicated that it remains a “one-game force” given its capabilities, and its strength is not sufficient to complement other branches. He added that there was no.
The report concluded that today's military faces a real risk of being unable to meet “the demands of a single major regional conflict while conducting a variety of presence and engagement operations.”
These findings are particularly alarming given the various threats to vital U.S. interests highlighted in the report.
The legacy showed that China, Russia, Iran, North Korea, and a variety of non-state actors all pose a high risk to U.S. vital interests. China and Russia in particular have the potential to make good on their threats, while Iran and North Korea are still building up their capabilities.
Cultural heritage reflects the Department of Defense
Understanding He said China poses to the United States “the most comprehensive and difficult national security challenges that span all three areas of U.S. national interests: the homeland, regional wars… and the international common domain.” Ta.
Blaze News previously reported that Air Force Air Mobility Command commander Gen. Mike Minihan is predicting war with China in 2025.
Secretary of the Air Force Frank Kendall similarly warned in September that war with China is imminent, especially if “our power projection capabilities and capabilities are not sufficient to deter Chinese aggression against Taiwan and other areas.” It could happen,” he suggested. If it prevails, the consequences could cast a long shadow. ”
Rob Greenway and Dakota Wood of the Heritage Foundation
Said Wednesday's statement said: “In the face of growing threats and a new Cold War with China, our weakened military is increasing global danger. But we are mindful of the urgency and need to act decisively. If we do so, there is still an opportunity to restore America's military power.”
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