Marine Corps Commandant Gen. James Amos says 8,000 Marines and two next generation weapons systems could be lost if sequester continues through the fiscal year.
According to The Hill, this is on top of the cuts the Marines are already making from 202,000 to 182,000 because of the 2011 Budget Control Act.
Amos said this reduction in numbers will put the Marines in a position where they may not be able to rotate in and out of the country if the U.S. undertakes “another war like Afghanistan or Iraq.” Such a war will most likely require Marines to go and stay until the war is over.
The cuts will also impact acquisitions of “the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter and Joint Light Combat Vehicle.”
On June 25, Army Chief of Staff Ray Odierno announced that the Army is also making cuts. Troop levels are being reduced from 541,000 to 490,000. Moreover, he said Fort Knox will lose its only combat brigade–the 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division–to sequester.
President Obama signed sequester into law on August 2, 2011.
Follow AWR Hawkins on Twitter @AWRHawkins
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