February 3, 2006
$70 Billion More Is Sought for Military in War Zones
By DAVID S. CLOUD
WASHINGTON, Feb. 2 — The Bush administration said Thursday that it would seek about $120 billion in additional financing to pay for continuing military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan through 2006.
The request shows that the cost of military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan has remained at virtually the same level for several years, despite hopes that a large number of the American troops may leave Iraq by the end of the year.
The $120 billion includes money for the fiscal year that began in October in the form of a $70 billion supplemental spending request, which had been expected. It also includes $50 billion in the overall budget request for the first months of the 2007 fiscal year that President Bush will submit to Congress on Monday, a figure that was described as basically a placeholder until a more specific number can be developed.
Over all, the Bush administration will propose a Defense Department budget of $439.3 billion for the 2007 fiscal year, almost a 5 percent increase over this year, according to a Pentagon official who spoke on condition of anonymity because the budget request has not officially been submitted to Congress.
The figure does not include the proposed new money for military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, which have been financed in stand-alone supplemental spending bills since 2001.
The administration's request for the operations in Iraq and Afghanistan would bring their total cost in the 2006 fiscal year to about $120 billion, some of which Congress has already approved. In a briefing for reporters, Joel Kaplan, the deputy director of the Office of Management and Budget, said the costs of military operations this year "will be roughly similar" to last year's costs.
These costs include pay and benefits for reservists, war-related benefits for the active-duty military, fuel, spare parts, transportation and contractor support.
Secretary of Defense Donald H. Rumsfeld acknowledged the growing sentiment for reducing the 130,000 American troops in Iraq in a speech on Thursday at the National Press Club, but reiterated that any further reductions depend on improvements in conditions in Iraq.
"We ought to be able to pull down our troops, but anyone who predicts 100,000 or some other number, I think is making a mistake," he said. "As the Iraqis become more capable, and they have a bigger number, one would think we'd be able to continue" troop reductions.
A significant amount of the money in the supplemental request to Congress would be spent on training the new Iraqi military forces.
Steven M. Kosiak, director of budget studies at the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments, a research group here, said that up until this most recent request, the total cost of military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan had been about $331 billion since Sept. 11, 2001.
Mr. Kosiak said the total included $76 billion for operations in Afghanistan; $226 billion for Iraq; and $29 billion for homeland defense (mainly air patrols after 9/11) and other expenses.
Mr. Rumsfeld said terrorist groups remained determined to strike American targets. "The enemy — while weakened and under great pressure — is still capable of global reach, still possesses the determination to kill more Americans and is still trying to do so with increasingly powerful weapons," he said.
Meanwhile, Army officials defended a proposal included in the administration's 2007 budget request to provide funds for a National Guard of 333,000 members, rather than the 350,000 authorized by Congress.
The proposal has been criticized by governors and members of Congress, even though recruitment difficulties have kept the Guard from reaching its authorized size.
"We have no intention of cutting" the National Guard, the Army chief of staff, Gen. Peter Schoomaker, told reporters at a Pentagon briefing, adding that the Army would find money in its budget if the Guard was able to recruit enough soldiers to meet its authorized level.
The Adjutants General Association, a lobbying group representing the leaders of state National Guard organizations, has been lobbying Congress to overturn the plan. Coming up with more money to train and equip recruits above the 333,000 level proposed in the administration's budget will not be easy, the group said.
Eric Schmitt contributed reporting for this article.
Copyright 2006The New York Times Company