Pentagon's $850 Billion Budget Would Tap US Stockpiles to Arm Taiwan

President Joe Biden’s proposed $850 billion Pentagon budget for fiscal 2025 sends less-than-subtle strategic messages aimed at China: It would tap U.S. stockpiles to arm Taiwan and provide major funding increases for long-range, air-launched anti-ship missiles.

The Defense Department’s share of the $7.3 trillion budget proposed to Congress on Monday reflects only a 1% increase. The Pentagon is already in a tough spot because Congress has yet to pass a spending measure for this fiscal year, which started Oct. 1, and hasn’t approved a supplemental security spending bill for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan.

Although the Biden administration is staying within budget caps imposed by Congress, that didn’t deter critics who demand more for defense.

“Our defense budget should be built with the goal of deterring the threats facing our nation,” House Armed Services Chairman Mike Rogers, an Alabama Republican, said in a statement. “Instead, we are forced to build a budget to meet an arbitrary number. I worry about the long-term impact this budget process will have on our national defense.”