The Army may be forced to reduce its size drastically which could impact the current defense strategy and limit US involvement overseas. John M. McHugh, the Army secretary, and Gen. Ray Odierno, the Army's new chief of staff, both recognized that the Army might be told to cut the number of soldiers below the 520,000 that was previously the goal for the decade. Before the attacks on September 11, 2001, the Army held about 480,000 troops. After increased involvement in Afghanistan and Iraq, the current level is at 570,000.
The Army may also have to comply with meeting $450 billion worth of cuts that were already ordered. These cutbacks are similar to two of the largest recent budget cuts and troop reductions following the Vietnam War and after the collapse of the Soviet Union. While ground troops were responsible for the most in Afghanistan and Iraq, the newer threats of nuclear power in North Korea or Iran are making troops viewed as less relevant.
Even though budget cuts must be made, General Odierno commented that, “We have to be ready for unknown contingencies. We have never predicted the next conflict that we will be in. So it is incumbent on us as an Army to ensure that we have a force that is ready to deal with these unknown contingencies, as well as roles that we will play in other strategies and other contingencies that we will be planning for.” Army officials are protesting the level of cutbacks, they are making an effort to make the reductions efficient and keep as many functional units available as possible instead of making "hollow" units that lacked the resources to function properly. The budget cuts may pose problems, but it seems that the military will be working hard to stay strong.
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