"We're now six months into this administration, we still haven't got a strategy for Afghanistan", McCain said, noting it was hard to get behind an Afghanistan budget request without knowing what the plan is. John McCain (R-Arizona), who blasted the Trump administration for not having a new strategy on how to deal with the worsening security situation in Afghanistan.
A May 11 letter sent to Congress by the CEOs of Boeing, Raytheon, and the Aerospace Industries Association, said that the Budget Control Act - the legislation that made sequestration into law - poses "significant danger to our national security". "The commander on the ground has asked for more", he said.
"I hope you understand that we're going to start getting more vocal in our criticism of not having a strategy for Afghanistan", said McCain.
Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Joseph Dunford (L) and Defense Secretary James Mattis prepare to testify before the Senate Armed Services Committee on Tuesday. The Army and Air Force said they had vastly more space for training and basing troops than they need and trimming the surplus would generate savings that could be used to strengthen the military. "We can not wait until we ideal our acquisition system to have planes that fly and ships that sail", said Thornberry. He told Mattis that if Congress does not hear the administration's strategy soon, "you're going to get a strategy from us", adding that "Congress owes the American people a strategy".
Speaking before the Senate Armed Services Committee on Tuesday, Mattis said a new plan would be ready by mid-July. He said that Congress and the Department of Defense should not ask the families of service members to "sacrifice any further" without an Afghanistan strategy in place.
U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis isn't happy with Congress.
The decision might be announced after the Trump administration completed its review of strategy regarding Afghanistan.
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The US now has 8,500 troops in Afghanistan, who are either providing support to Afghan troops or hunting various terrorist groups throughout the mountainous country.
The committee called Mattis and Dunford to field questions about President Donald Trump's proposed military budget for the 2018 fiscal year, which begins October 1.
The Department of Defense now believe it needs annual growth of "3 percent just to maintain the competitive level", Dunford said, adding they "need at least 5 percent for several years to come, before we can be competitive".
This could mean a boost in the number of US forces in Afghanistan, where 16 years of fighting against the Taliban and other militants has resulted in a stalemate. "Today, every operating domain ... is contested", he said. More fire support assets, such as artillery and aircraft, atop other authority would mean that Afghan forces would likely become more reliant on USA troops, though the strikes would keep Afghan casualties lower.
"The bulk of the fighting will continued to be carried by the Afghan forces", he said.
Three U.S. soldiers were killed Saturday during an apparent insider attack, bringing the total number of U.S. troops killed in Afghanistan in 2017 to six.
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