U.S. Marine vehicles leave a mortar range near Camp Shorabak in Afghanistan's Helmand province, May 4, 2013. The Marines provided security for the Regional Corps Battalion School instructors who trained Afghan soldiers on the 60mm mortar system. The Marines are assigned to 2nd Battalion, 8th Marines, Regimental Combat Team 7. U.S. Marine Corps photo by Staff Sgt. Ezekiel R. Kitandwe
Pentagon Requests $79.4 Billion For Combat Operations Stars And Stripes
WASHINGTON – The Pentagon on Friday sent two budget items to Congress – one to provide funding for combat operations next year, and another to limit the sting of sequestration this year.
The Defense Department is asking for $79.4 billion for its overseas contingency operations, or OCO, budget in 2014. The department did not include the OCO request with the $526.6 billion Pentagon base budget request submitted in April, saying that continuing deliberations over troop levels in Afghanistan made the spending picture unclear.
Troop numbers in Afghanistan will decline markedly during fiscal 2014, which starts Oct. 1. The Obama administration has said it would remove just over half the current number of troops before stabilizing the level at about 34,000 by February. The drawdown is expected to continue after Afghan elections are held in April, during which U.S. troops will assist with security.
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More News On Funding Requests For Afghan Operations
Pentagon Requests Nearly $80B for Afghanistan War -- Defense News/AFP
Pentagon Said to Seek $80 Billion for War Amid Withdrawal -- Bloomberg
Obama seeks to cut Afghan war spending by 10 pct -- Reuters
Pentagon officials ask Congress to shift $9.6B -- The Hill
My Comment: For a war that is "winding down" .... if this budget request is accepted (and my guess is that it will be approved), the Afghan war will be costing US taxpayer approximately $200 million per day. This total does not included long term health/medical/debt/etc. expenses.
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