By Mike Stone
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – President Joe Biden’s record peacetime national defense budget request of $886 billion boasts a 5.2% pay raise for troops and the largest research and development budget in history, as Russian aggression in Ukraine spurs demand for more military spending on munitions.
Biden’s request earmarks $842 billion for the Pentagon with an additional $44 billion earmarked for defense-related programs at the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Department of Energy and other agencies, bringing the national security budget to $886 billion, up from $858 billion enacted last year.
Amid Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and a looming China, Congress has signaled it will increase defense spending over Biden’s request during the months-long budget process that this request kicks off.
“This topline request serves as a useful starting point,” U.S. Senator Jack Reed, Chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, said when the budget figures were unveiled on Thursday.
This budget will be the first to procure missiles and other munitions with multi-year contracts, something that is routine for planes and ships, as the Pentagon signals enduring demand to top munitions makers like Raytheon Technologies Corp, Lockheed Martin Corp and Aerojet Rocketdyne Holdings Inc.
(Reporting by Mike Stone in Washington;Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)
