I am sure that our witnesses today recognize the difficulty that this committee faces in assessing whether we are funding the right programs and are setting the right priorities in the absence of that strategy or detailed plans for the size, structure, or shape of our military. Our hearings so far this year have revealed that despite the $48 billion increase proposed in the 2003 budget, that there are important areas where this budget does not meet the future needs of our military services.

For instance, even as the Navy's budget is going up substantially, the number of ships in the budget is going down. This budget would build 17 ships over the next 3 years, compared to the 23 ships in the shipbuilding plan of the last administration for the same period.

The military construction budget request is 25 percent below last year's level. This amount is sufficient to recapitalize our facilities every 120 years, almost double the Department's goal of a 67-year replacement cycle, and our witnesses today have indicated that they have other unfunded priorities such as force protection, antiterrorism, and even personnel strength. So with this large increase in defense spending this still brings us back to the question of priorities.

America's Armed Forces are performing superbly in their fight against terrorism. The creativity and ingenuity we have seen in the campaign against al Qaeda in Afghanistan shows that our military leadership resisted the temptation to fight the last war. They are fighting today's war, and now we in Congress must resist the temptation to fund the last war. That is, to add money to this budget for programs that are a holdover from the Cold War and do not help build the kind of military that we need to meet the threats of the 21st century. We will continue to do, as a committee, all in our power to ensure that our Armed Forces have the right resources, tools, and technologies to meet those threats.

Senator Warner.

STATEMENT OF SENATOR JOHN WARNER

Senator WARNER. Thank you. Mr. Chairman, so that we can move ahead, I am going to ask to include my statement in the record and I will just make a few observations.

First, I certainly join you in expressing my sympathy and gratitude to those families who are grieving today for the loss of their loved ones and for those injured. I am going to comment at the end of my remarks about a period in history 57 years ago, to give some perspective to the contributions that have been made through halfa-century by the men and women of the Armed Forces to maintain the freedom of this country.

Each year, our committee looks forward to this important hearing, and with no disrespect to the concept of civilian management of the Department of Defense, there has to be in any system checks and balances, and traditionally the chiefs have come before Congress and given that perspective. I join my chairman in asking each of you today to give us not only your professional views, but also your personal views, which each of you agreed to do at the time of your confirmation. In that way, we can get at times a different perspective from that presented by the civilian control of the

Department of Defense. That civilian control, of course, is key. It goes back to the very beginning of our history, and yesterday Secretary Rumsfeld came to the Senate and met privately with, I believe, 70 Senators. He spent an hour-and-a-half and responded to each and every question asked by those present.

I stayed from the beginning until the very end. It was a full coverage of all aspects of the operation now in the Afghan area of responsibility (AOR) and in other parts of the world. He clearly enunciated the goals of President Bush, a very courageous President.

At this critical time in our history I think he is surprising the world with the brilliance of his leadership and the strong conviction he has about the need to rid the world of terrorism. Your men and women of the Armed Forces are right there in the front lines, and also a number of other nations are very much involved in this operation. For various reasons, we cannot give all the details on it, but the American public, and especially the Muslim world, should understand this is not the U.S. versus the Muslim world, this is the free world versus small, unrepresentative elements of the Muslim world, and we are joined by an extraordinary coalition of forces in this engagement.

Our committee has a very heavy responsibility this year. We face the largest increase percentagewise in defense spending since Ronald Reagan was President and we are going to go about that in a very careful and methodical way. First, we will start with the oversight, and then with other means to hopefully convince all members of the Senate that this budget submitted by this courageous President is the one that we need at this time, not only for the projection of our forces abroad to deter attack, but for our homeland defense, the President's highest priority, this Senator's highest priority, and each of you in various ways are participating in that.

In my judgment, not since World War II has this Nation been so unified behind its President, the men and women in uniform, and the vast array of civilians who work directly to support the men and women in uniform in your respective departments. We are exceedingly grateful to all.

Further, this war has truly been a joint operation. That has been a goal we have been trying to achieve for many years. I think at long last we go onto the battlefields, onto the ships, and into the air in every respect proud of the various units and respective services, but fully accepting joint responsibility to prosecute this very difficult war.

Lastly, these past 2 weeks, as I visited with families and others that have been hit by these casualty situations, and as I traveled through my state talking to my constituents about this conflict, I remind them of our history, of what has gone before us. Every casualty, one single individual, is a frightful loss to our Nation, to their families, and to their services. I remember so well 57 years ago in that period in history when two great battles raged between the United States and our adversaries in Europe and in the Pacific. Take the Battle of Iwo Jima: in 30 days from February 19, 1945, until March 26, 1945, the total American casualties were 25,851, with 6,800 dead and 19,000 wounded. That was in the Pacific. In Europe, during the Battle of the Bulge, from December 16, 1944 to January 19, 1945, approximately 83,000 of the Eighth Corps were

attacked by 30 German Divisions. Of the 83,000, there were 41,000 casualties, with 4,000 killed in action, 20,000 wounded, and some 17,000 missing. That is the price that our Nation has paid, working with our allies, to protect freedom. I hope all Americans will reflect on the proud history of those who preceded you, wearing the uniforms of your respective services, and what they, their families, and this Nation have done in our world leadership role to protect freedom.

At this point, I would like to submit my opening statement and the statements of Senators Thurmond and Allard.

[The prepared statements of Senators Warner, Thurmond, and Allard follow:]

PREPARED STATEMENT BY SENATOR JOHN WARNER

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I join you in welcoming our service chiefs this morn

ing want to express my sincere appreciation to each of you for your service to our

country. This committee holds many hearings each year, but none more important than this one. We look to you for the professional military judgments that are so critical to our annual budget deliberations. Time and time again, you and your predecessors have summoned the courage to point out growing shortfalls and challenges to current and future readiness. Balancing the many needs and competing priorities of your respective services, and making the tough recommendations, is a difficult, but critical task.

I want to begin by expressing my sympathies, condolences, and gratitude to the families, units, and friends of our service men and women who have lost their lives in this important global war against terrorism. Their loss, defending America and freedom, reminds us of the dangers our men and women in uniform face every day, as they defend our freedom around the world. We were encouraged by our early success in the war, but these tragic losses serve to remind us that this war on terrorism is just beginning. It is a struggle that will take us to the far corners of the world and the price will be high, but as President Bush recently reminded us: "While the price of freedom and security is high, it is never too high.”

The President's budget request for fiscal year 2003 represents the largest increase $48 billion over the fiscal year 2002 appropriated level-for the Department of Defense in two decades. All of you have long advocated significant increases in defense spending to reverse years of overuse and underfunding of our military forces. Now, following the most devastating attack on our homeland in history, with our Nation at war, it is essential that Congress stand together with our President and our men and women in uniform by providing the resources you will need to fight this war and prepare for the many challenges ahead.

The President has rallied the Nation, and, indeed the world, to fight this global war against terrorists and those who harbor them. It is a war unlike any we have ever fought before. It is a credit to each of you gentlemen that when the Nation called, each of your services was ready. Over the past few weeks, we have heard from our regional commanders in chief and from Secretary Rumsfeld about just how well our service men and women have performed. Clearly, it has been with distinction. The Nation is thankful to you, gentlemen, for the trained and ready forces that continue to make our Nation proud-well done.

The events of the past week have been a stark reminder that this war is far from over. Our forces have performed magnificently so far, but many challenges lie ahead. We will continue to depend on you, gentlemen, to answer the difficult questions about the long term impact of the current high operational tempo; to tell us what has worked well; and, to tell us what needs to change.

This war has truly been a joint operation-all services operating together as one and many coalition nations operating with U.S. forces. When the full story is told, people will marvel at the new roles played by our special operations forces, our maritime forces, our unmanned vehicles, and other high tech weaponry and techniques. During my travels to the region and in my on-going conversations with troops and commanders, I am constantly reminded that we are fighting a new kind of war and writing a new chapter in military history. Each of you has championed evolutionary and revolutionary changes within your respective services that will enable this new chapter to have a positive ending. Now, we must ensure that we adequately fund the capabilities and concepts that have served us so well, and carefully study the

lessons learned to determine what more is required to transform our forces to meet the new and unexpected threats ahead.

I am supportive of this budget request and its priorities of winning the war against terrorism, defending our homeland, improving quality of life for our service personnel, and transforming our forces. But, I do have some concerns that I hope each of you will address. Despite a $48 billion increase, it is clear that this budget request does not fully address the needs of our Armed Forces, as evidenced by unfunded requirements for the services which are in excess of $23 billion. Significant shortfalls in the shipbuilding account and unmet needs for additional end strength are high on my list of concerns.

As we discuss and debate this budget request in the days and weeks ahead, as is the duty of this committee and Congress, on one thing we can all agree: the commitment, dedication, and performance of the soldiers, sailors, airmen, and marines in service to their Nation has been remarkable. We are ever mindful of the dangers they confront every day and are forever grateful for their willingness and readiness

to serve.

The Nation is united in purpose and determination as seldom before in our history—united behind our President and our Armed Forces. We, in Congress, will do everything we can to provide the resources and capabilities you need to train, man and equip your services to carry on their proud traditions of service to country.

PREPARED STATEMENT BY SENATOR STROM THURMOND

Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

Mr. Chairman, this morning we meet to receive testimony from our senior military leaders regarding the adequacy of the President's budget request for the Department of Defense. Before recognizing our distinguished panel, I want to express my condolences to the families and friends of the soldiers, sailors, airmen, and marines who were killed in Afghanistan during the most recent battle against terrorist forces. These heroic deaths are vivid reminders of the sacrifices our military personnel make daily, whether it is in Afghanistan, Bosnia, Korea, or here at home. I want them all to know how proud I am of every one of them.

Today's hearing will provide the committee the opportunity to hear directly from the senior leaders we hold responsible for the readiness of our military services. General Shinseki, Admiral Clark, General Jumper, and General Jones have already had a major impact on improving the current readiness of their services. More important, they have provided the vision on how to transform their services to meet the challenges of the new century. I doubt that any of them envisioned the tragedy of September 11 and the war against terrorism, yet each of their services responded magnificently both in fighting the terrorist on their turf and in providing the visible security at our airports, in the sky, and here on Capitol Hill.

Despite the need to transform each service, we cannot forget the basic needs of the men and women in uniform. In prior hearings, both General Ralston and General Schwartz went into great detail describing the dismal conditions of the facilities in their commands. Many of my colleagues have personally seen these facilities and have also described them during various hearings. Mr. Chairman, I hope that the committee, working with our service chiefs, will dedicate additional resources to make headway in upgrading these facilities to the standards we owe our soldiers, sailors, airmen, and marines.

Finally, Mr. Chairman, we must also take actions to ease the economic impact the Reserve call up has had on the lives of the individuals and their families. Many Reservists, whether from the National Guard or Reserves, suffer financially because of their service to the Nation during this time of crisis. Since we will be relying on our citizen soldiers to a greater extent than ever before, we have to ensure that their service does not result in an economic hardship on them, their families, or business. I hope we can work together to provide a solution to this persistent problem.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

PREPARED STATEMENT BY SENATOR WAYNE ALLARD

Thank you Mr. Chairman.

First and foremost, I want to express my most sincere appreciation to each of you for your leadership and dedication. Today our Nation is demanding much of our military to fight a global war on terrorism. Our forces are fighting in Afghanistan, protecting our security at home, and assisting forces in the Philippines, Yemen, and even Georgia. This is in addition to Operations Northern Watch and Southern

Watch, and other on-going commitments around the world. Despite the strain of these demands, the men and women of our Armed Forces have met the challenge and demonstrated their great skill, courage, and dedication. This success was no accident. Troops take time to develop their expertise. Weapon systems such as Global Hawk take time to design, build, and test. The leadership must have the vision to coalesce these forces so they are ready when ever and where ever their country calls on them. You've demonstrated such vision and we are deeply indebted.

As we fight this war today, we must continue to look to the future and build a fighting force ready to defeat the threats of the future. I believe the transformation you're undergoing is important and necessary to our national security. Although the Taliban may no longer rule in Kandahar, and although al Qaeda may no longer train terrorists in Afghan camps, many threats to our national security remain. As President Bush has clearly stated, regimes exist which wish to do us harm. We must remain strong and capable to respond to these threats.

Chairman LEVIN. Thank you very much, Senator Warner. I think, given the large number of Senators and witnesses we have, that we will move directly to our witnesses' statements. General Shinseki.

STATEMENT OF GEN. ERIC K. SHINSEKI, USA, CHIEF OF STAFF, UNITED STATES ARMY

General SHINSEKI. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman. Senator Warner, distinguished members of this committee, it is an honor once again to appear here before this committee with the service chiefs to update you on the posture of the Army and its state of readiness.

First, let me on behalf of the Army, much as Senator Warner and the chairman have done, express our deepest condolences to the families from all of our services who have suffered injury and loss in this war on terrorism. We have the greatest fighting forces and the best leaders in the world from all of our services.

Willingly and without hesitation, they continue to demonstrate their profound and abiding devotion to this Nation and on our behalf they take risks, go into harm's way, shed blood, and prepare to give lives as necessary, as some have here in the recent fighting. They do so to defend peace and freedom and our way of life. They will see this through to its decisive outcome, and we could not be prouder of all of them.

Senator Warner's remarks remind me that perhaps for the first time since World War II we have American young men and women fighting directly on behalf of the American people, as a result of what happened on September 11.

Let me further report, Mr. Chairman, that our soldiers and our civilians in the Army appreciate much more than I can put into words what you have accomplished on their behalf this past year, enhancements in pay, health care, housing, and retirement benefits. They continue to make incredible contributions and even more incredible sacrifices, but they look to us to demonstrate both the Nation's appreciation and its commitment to them and their families. It is a commitment that you have honored well, and they are grateful.

Nearly 3 years ago, the Army took a hard and discriminating look at itself. After examining our capabilities against the emerging strategic environment as we saw it then, we decided to take some risks. We committed ourselves to transforming the way we will fight and win the new wars of the new century. This committee