It is common knowledge that the United States military has a budget which dwarfs those of
other countries. In fact, the American military receives more funds larger than the next seven
or eight nations combined, depending on how military spending is quantified. However,
the US military is certainly not larger in size than the next eight militaries combined.
In fact, it employs fewer people than the Chinese military despite receiving about three
times more funds. And India, whose military budget is a small fraction of the United States,
has almost as many troops. Why does the American military consume such a sum of money when
it isn’t even the largest in the world? Here are a few of the reasons why.
The Us Military Loves Technology The American military’s embrace of technology
is the first and foremost reason for the massive budget. Recruiting a million soldiers and
giving them rifles is one thing. Recruiting a million soldiers and giving them the latest
body armor, vehicles, radios, weapons, etc. is another. The US military tends to solve
its problems with advanced equipment, rather than by recruiting more personnel. In many
cases, this equipment gives American forces a huge advantage in combat. For example, one
fighter airplane with a powerful radar can be as powerful as ten with inferior equipment,
if the radar allows the advanced plane to strike before the simpler aircraft even know
what hit them. Similarly, a soldier outfitted with advanced night vision equipment can overpower
many opponents who are blinded by the dark. Such technological advantages allow the US
military to stay dominant without having to recruit tens of millions. Technology also
reduces the number of casualties taken in combat, as advanced equipment allows American
forces to deliver massive firepower while putting fewer soldiers in danger. Of course,
the drawback is that all this equipment costs huge sums of money.
Another downside of this technological approach is that adversaries benefit from America’s
progress. In order to discover and implement technologies before its competitors, the US
military has to fund huge amounts of research and development, while also paying to purchase
the new and expensive technologies it helps create. Other military powers, such as China,
tend to wait a few years until another military has perfected a technology and then reverse-engineer
it, avoiding much of the research and development process (although this is changing as China
boosts its funding). Also, while technology is hugely helpful when
fighting against a large conventional force in open battle, it has limits in other kinds
of combat. In jungles, for example, tanks have difficulty maneuvering and airplanes
cannot see below the thick tree cover. In dense cities, a sniper hiding on a balcony
can go undetected by even the best sensors. Also, some enemies (such as the Taliban or
Al Quaeda) prefer not to face American forces in open combat. Rather, they blend in with
civilians and perform raids as well as terror attacks, attempting to frustrate and wear
down the occupier instead of securing a battlefield victory. Against these kinds of enemies, securing
the support of locals and preventing the recruitment of additional terrorists is more important
than firepower. The Us Military Maintains A Global Presence
During the Cold War, America was the leader of a massive drive to stop the expansion of
communism. This meant forming alliances with countries from South Korea to Saudi Arabia
and stationing soldiers all over the globe to fight communist forces. After the collapse
of the Soviet Union, the US emerged as the world’s sole superpower, with a global web
of allies, treaties, and, of course, enemies. To defend these ties and keep its adversaries
at bay, the US military deploys to over 150 countries around the world and maintains a
network of bases in many allied nations. Just as vacationing is expensive, sending soldiers
to far away places also has a price. Renting facilities from foreign countries, hiring
translators, transporting soldiers, airlifting equipment, relocating families, buying provisions,
and providing overseas compensation are just a few of the extra costs associated with the
military’s global footprint. The Us Military Can Deploy Anywhere On Short
Notice Most of the world’s armed forces exist to
defend the current regime, guard borders, and fight wars against neighboring countries.
These militaries do not need to rapidly move troops and equipment over long distances because
their responsibilities are not global. The US military, on the other hand, is tasked
with engaging in warfare anywhere in the world. While the aforementioned network of bases
helps to maintain a moderate number of troops in key regions, a much larger force would
be needed in times of war, so the bulk of the American military must be capable of rapidly
deploying over long distances when necessary. For this reason, the US Air Force has an unmatched
transport force of over 800 aircraft, many of which are giants such as the C-5 Galaxy
and the C-17 Globemaster II. To keep these massive planes aloft on trans-continental
journeys, the Air Force has a fleet of 450 tankers, which are used to refuel other planes.
Russia only has 19 such aircraft. The US Navy also operates many amphibious warfare ships,
designed to land soldiers on foreign shores, and many troop transports as well. Of course,
all these planes and ships cost hundreds of millions of dollars each — the ability to
deploy anywhere does not come cheap. The Us Military Is A Volunteer Force
Many other armed forces obtain personnel by conscription (forcing eligible citizens to
serve in the military for a period of time.) Because conscription is mandatory, conscripts
can be paid low wages (or no wage at all) and there is no need to provide them with
a retirement package or other amenities. The US military, on the other hand, is an all-volunteer
force, meaning nobody is forced to join (except in extraordinary circumstances). Because of
this, the US military has to offer enough compensation to convince citizens that a military
career is worthwhile. For highly skilled military positions such as doctors, programmers, and
lawyers, salaries have to be nearly as high as in the private sector. While the all-volunteer
force undoubtedly improves morale and combat ability, it also means that the US military
pays a large sum in wages. Other countries such as China also field all-volunteer forces,
but the price of attracting volunteers in China is far less than in the US because of
America’s high standard of living. The Us Military Is Often At War
Unsurprisingly, war is expensive. Moving an Armored Brigade Combat Team one mile costs
$66,000 in maintenance and fuel. One Standard Missile 6 anti-air missile is around $3.5
million dollars. Replacing destroyed equipment, buying lots of ammunition, paying deployment
bonuses, compensating for injuries, purchasing extra rations, building infrastructure in
the combat zone, and buying unfathomable amounts of fuel are just some of the factors that
contribute to the cost of combat. During the height of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan,
the American Overseas Contingency Operations fund, which is designed to fund war costs
and separately from the peacetime budget, received a staggering $160 billion dollars
per year. While this figure is only an “approximation” of the actual costs of war according to the
Government Accountability Office, it nonetheless illustrates the substantial fiscal impact
of wars. And since the US has been involved in many wars of various sizes since its inception,
its combat-related expenditures are far higher than for countries which generally avoid conflict.