Inside the Pentagon highlights

By Tony Bertuca / February 15, 2018 at 10:06 AM

Some must-reads from this week's edition of Inside the Pentagon:

1. The Trump administration Monday unveiled the outlines of a $686 billion budget for the Defense Department in fiscal year 2019 that includes a $20 billion placeholder for military spending increases set as part of the recent two-year budget deal.

Full story: DOD seeks $686B in FY-19; $617B in base budget with big modernization boost

2. Before Congress finalized a two-year spending deal, the Defense Department planned to finance a multibillion-dollar budget buildup through its controversial Overseas Contingency Operations account. Now, it is reversing course and projects it will begin phasing out OCO in FY-20.

Full story: Pentagon sparks OCO whiplash as it seesaws from $89B request to planned phase-out

3. The Missile Defense Agency this year plans to select the best of three "low-power" lasers being designed by industry for follow-on development, but the agency's budget documents show a laser potentially powerful enough to disable ballistic missiles in their boost phase is not planned to be put on contract until 2023.

Full story: MDA to select best 'low-power' laser design this year

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