Pentagon Makes $267 Billion Push for Research & Development to Counter China, Support Integrated Deterrence

By Kris Osborn – President & Editor-In-Chief, Warrior Maven

The Pentagon is making a decided and targeted push to massively rev up innovation, research and development efforts to ensure the US keeps pace and stays in front of Russian and Chinese modernization.

Pentagon’s 2023 Budget

This emphasis, of course in place for many years, is being deliberately stepped up in the Pentagon’s 2023 budget for the clear purpose of ensuring Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin’s Integrated Deterrence posture.

During recent remarks about the existing US National Defense Strategy and 2023 Pentagon budget, Deputy Defense Secretary Kathleen Hicks explained the conceptual foundation informing the push to prioritize research and innovation.

“Our topline request for Fiscal Year 23 includes $276 billion for procurement and for research, development, testing, and evaluation – and that is across land, air, sea, cyber, and space – domains that must be netted together for integrated deterrence,” Hicks said, according to a Pentagon transcript of her remarks.

This emphasis is not surprising, as the Biden administration likely reflects upon its Science and Technology push during the Obama years during which Pentagon and industry scientists pursued a “third offset” in breakthrough technologies. The impetus behind today’s efforts could likely be seen as closely aligned with this thinking, as the research organizations with the Army, Navy and Air Force are now placing additional emphasis upon basic research likely to inform warfare capabilities in the 2040s and 2050s.

While existing work is clearly focused upon near-term applications and a need to closely link the research and development community with current operational needs. This kind of accelerated integration is informing current Army, Navy and Air Force efforts to decrease “sensor-to-shooter” time, integrated AI

“Our first approach is integrated deterrence. We seek to network our efforts across domains, theaters, and the spectrum of conflict to ensure that the U.S. military, in close cooperation with the rest of the U.S. government and our Allies and partners, makes the folly and costs of aggression very clear,” Hicks said.