U.S. Army Chief of Staff General Ray Odierno (L) speaks during a meeting with Fang Fenghui (not pictured), Chief of General Staff of the People’s Liberation Army, at Bayi Building in Beijing February 21, 2014.

Credit: Reuters/Lintao Zhang/Pool

(Reuters) – The U.S. Army warned on Monday that mandatory budget cuts due to resume in fiscal 2016 would be devastating to a service that is already facing huge risks as it tries to keep forces ready for battle, replace aging equipment and respond to crises around the world.
“We have to have a national security debate … because there is too much going on,” U.S. Army Chief of Staff General Ray Odierno told reporters at the annual Association of the U.S. Army (AUSA) conference.
Odierno said the Army had agreed to further reduce the size of its active force to 450,000 troops from an earlier goal of 490,000 to comply with mandatory budget cuts known as sequestration, but he questioned if even the original target would allow the Army to respond as needed around the globe.
“The problem is that since we made those statements, the world is changing in front of us,” Odierno said, citing Russian aggression in eastern Europe, growing threats from Islamic State militants and challenges in other areas.
Read More: http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/10/13/us-usa-military-army-idUSKCN0I21V620141013