The Army is meeting 50% of the nation’s global security requirements while spending just 25% of the defense budget, Army Vice Chief of Staff Gen. Joseph Martin said. 

This includes 63,000 soldiers involved in domestic operations such as border security, COVID-19 assignments and supporting law enforcement, he said. “The demand for Army capabilities by federal agencies and combatant commanders continues to exceed supply, and we do not anticipate a decrease in demand.” 

Martin’s remarks came as the Army had troops in 140 countries, including 69,000 in the Indo-Pacific, 30,000 in Europe and 21,000 in the Central Command area of operations.  

COVID-19 reduced some training, but “there were no significant interruptions” in basic training while creating a “small but manageable” backlog in professional military education for NCOs and officers, Martin said.  

“The Army is the nation’s go-to force during times of crisis and is a DoD leader in concept and technology development,” Martin said. “Although we sit at a high level of readiness and are able to supply over 50% of joint force requirements, that readiness is fleeting. Additional demands or a reduction in resources would strain our ability to meet the needs of combatant commanders and federal agencies and place our transformation effort at risk.”