Stuck in the Cul-de-Sac: How U.S. Defense Spending Prioritizes Innovation over Deterrence : Center for a New American Security (CNAS) , October , 2025
Stuck in the Cul-de-Sac: How U.S. Defense Spending Prioritizes Innovation over Deterrence : Center for a New American Security (CNAS) , October , 2025
From the report: “For more than a decade, the United States has sought to modernize its military to deter China, but it has become stuck in a developmental cul-de-sac that has allowed China to steadily shift the balance of power in the Indo-Pacific in its favor. Recent U.S. defense budgets have disproportionately invested in long-term developmental programs at the expense of producing sufficient capabilities available for the near term. As a result, today’s Joint Force is smaller, older, and less capable than at any other time in recent history.
Over the past 15 years, the average time and cost the Pentagon has taken to field major weapon systems has grown significantly, and the share of research, development, test, and evaluation (RDTE) spending within the broader defense budget has continued to steadily grow. Despite extended periods of very expensive research and development, major weapon systems have frequently failed to enter production on time or in numbers large enough to make a difference for U.S. warfighters. RDTE cost growth has also affected mature programs, where unexpected modernization challenges have interfered with plans to expand production of available capabilities.”
Authors - Haelig, Carlton, Sheers, PhilipSubjects
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