ASSOCIATION OF THE UNITED STATES ARMY

With more than 108,000 soldiers deployed or stationed across 160 countries, the U.S. Army is focused on building and maintaining readiness, Army Vice Chief of Staff Gen. Christopher LaNeve said.

“Every decision I make as vice chief begins and ends with one question—does this make our soldiers more lethal and ready to fight and win when called upon?” LaNeve said during testimony before the Senate Armed Services readiness subcommittee.

Army transformation is a key component of the service’s fiscal year 2026 budget request, which “demonstrates a strong commitment” to the service, its soldiers and the nation, said Maj. Gen. Mark Bennett, director of the Army budget.

The Army’s budget guru will speak July 24 as part of the Association of the U.S. Army’s Coffee Series.

Maj. Gen. Mark Bennett, director of the Army budget, will discuss the Army’s $197.4 billion fiscal year 2026 budget request during the event at AUSA headquarters in Arlington, Virginia.

The event opens at 6:30 a.m. with registration, coffee and networking. The program is scheduled to begin at 7:15 a.m. It is free for military members, government employees and the media.

The Army is seeking $197.4 billion in fiscal year 2026 to transform the force for the future.

Unveiled on June 26, the budget request includes $5.4 billion that’s part of a separate spending bill being considered in Congress, as well as a 3.8% military pay raise.

“Our Army must transform now to a leaner, more lethal force by infusing technology, cutting obsolete systems and reducing overhead to defeat any adversary,” Army Secretary Dan Driscoll says in an Army budget document.

As the Army moves to transform—and transform quickly—it needs adequate, timely and predictable funding, Army Vice Chief of Staff Gen. James Mingus said.

Speaking April 22 at an Association of the U.S. Army Coffee Series event, Mingus said the Army was helped by “some additional authorities” in the continuing resolution that runs through Sept. 30, but “yearlong CRs are not good.”

When it comes to manufacturing, the biggest challenge facing the Army is the service’s approach to it, Army Chief of Staff Gen. Randy George said.

“It’s a process change, that’s what we’ve got to get after,” George said Dec. 7 during a panel discussion at the Reagan National Defense Forum in Simi Valley, California. “I think that’s the biggest challenge we have.”

The Association of the U.S. Army, joined by five like-minded military associations, is urging key lawmakers to pass adequate and timely budgets to support the Army in fiscal year 2025.

The Association of the U.S. Army is urging Congress to swiftly pass the national security supplemental to support the Army while investing in America’s defense industrial base.

In today’s complex and volatile world, the Army must transform—and transform quickly, the service’s top leaders testified April 10 on Capitol Hill.

“The world is more volatile today than I have seen it in my 36-year career,” Army Chief of Staff Gen. Randy George said. “A spark in any region can have global impacts. Meanwhile, the character of war is changing rapidly. Our Army is as important as ever to the joint force. We must deter war everywhere and be ready to respond anywhere.”