Just recently, Trump’s administration made a budget cut by more than 90% in the foreign aid budgets. Now, they are considering making cuts to the top US military budget, as the Trump administration wants to minimize the federal government.

This plan, which is still under consideration, includes consolidating combatant commands, eliminating the directorate that oversees development, training, and education for the joint force, and pausing the expansion of US Forces in Japan.

US Military Budget Cuts in Military Leadership

The Pentagon is considering making cuts to the top US military budget as they want to shrink the federal government, according to CNN and US defense officials.

In this regard, the Pentagon has proposed cutting 8% of its budget in each of the next five years, amounting to $50 billion each year. The current annual US military budget is over $800 billion.

The Department of Government Efficiency has pushed the Pentagon and other federal agencies to make cuts. Therefore, the document was prepared for senior leaders this March by US defense officials.

Last month, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth said that the DOD would refer to DOGE to help the department, “find fraud, waste and abuse in the largest discretionary budget in the federal government.”

What Would Happen to Military Operations?

This plan includes consolidating combatant commands, possibly eliminating a directorate that oversees development, training, and education for the joint force, and pausing the expansion of US Forces in Japan.

Consolidating Commands

One of the measures being considered to be cut is merging the European Command and Africa Command into a single command that will be based in Stuttgart, Germany. US Northern and Southern Commands will also be combined into a single AMERICOM command. The estimated saving in the first year is over $270 million.

The Pentagon’s consideration is focused on eliminating a large number of civilian employees, with the goal of cutting 5-8% of the department’s civilian workforce. The officials in 2007 determined that Africa is a large region with issues to have its command, which is why AFRICOM was created in the same year.

However, NORTHCOM and SOUTCOM have always been distinct. Both of these focus on different security priorities. NORTHCOM is homeland defense with the cooperation of Canada and Mexico. On the other hand, SOUTHCOM is in Central and South America, the Caribbean, and the surrounding waters.

Combining both would save the Pentagon about $330 million over five years, which makes it a significant move for the Pentagon.

Stopping the Expansion of US Forces Japan

The Pentagon is also considering stopping the expansion of US Forces Japan as the said estimated savings if the US Forces Japan is paused is about $1.1 billion in a year. However, this could create a political risk for the US in Japan.

During the Biden administration, the US military forces were revamped and modernized to deepen cooperation with Tokyo, regardless of increased threats from China.

Cuts to Joint Staff

The plan also includes firing nearly 400 civilians working in the Joint Staff’s future operations cell, cyber, and training, with the plan to also move hundreds of Joint Staff employees to a base in Suffolk, Virginia.

Why Is the Pentagon Considering These Cuts?

The government spends a huge amount on defense, and some of them are considered “wasteful spending.”

“Our budget will resource the fighting force we need, cease unnecessary defense spending, reject excessive bureaucracy, and drive actionable reform, including progress on the audit,” Hegseth wrote in a memo.

The full set of initial findings by DOGE revealed about $80 million in wasteful spending that could be better spent on lethality and readiness. Therefore, there’s a need for the Pentagon to make cuts, save costs, and reform the military.

What Comes Next?

While it was also written in the memo that this could create political risk, the goal of the current administration is to eliminate wasteful spending.

“With DOGE, we are focusing as much as we can on headquarters and fat and top-line stuff that allows us to reinvest elsewhere,” Hegseth said.

Back in February, Hegseth ordered the military to create plans to make the necessary cuts to the top US military budget over the next five years, with border security exempted.

While the cuts could save about $1 billion over the next five years, it could also result in “loss of key trained staff and experts either by elimination or re-location.”

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Sources:

• Pentagon Weighs Major Cuts to Top of US Military
• Implementing the President’s “Department of Government Efficiency” Cost Efficiency Initiative