Secretary of Defense Ash Carter

2017 Defense Posture Statement Secretary of Defense Ash Carter

This budget marks a major inflection point for the Department of Defense. Over the last year, Secretary Carter has shifted the weight of the defense budget to focus on five evolving challenges we face - great power competition from a resurgent Russia and a rising China, regional threats from North Korea and Iran, and the enduring need to counter terrorism - because, while the basic elements of our nation's defense strategy remain valid, today's security environment demands that DoD be flexible and innovative in response. Armed with a bipartisan budget deal that provided some critical stability for 2017 by setting the size of the budget for two years, this year's budget, described in this posture statement, drives change by setting its shape and direction: to adjust to a new strategic era, and to seize opportunities for the future. It makes and sharpens breakthrough investments in new operational concepts, in pioneering and dominating technological frontiers (including undersea, cyber, space, electronic warfare, and other advanced capabilities), in reforming the DoD enterprise, and in building the force of the future. The product of a Secretary of Defense who's determined to be open to new ideas, to fight the fights of today while significantly re-envisioning and recommitting to high-end deterrence for tomorrow, and to care for and leverage the enduring advantage that is and always will be our people, this budget is key to ensuring that America's military can continue to defend our country and help make a better world for generations to come.