An apartment building in Kharkiv after Russian shelling (Photo by SERGEY BOBOK/AFP via Getty Images)
As Congress and the American people consider the merits of future aid to Ukraine and Israel, it is crucial to recognize this support is a vital downpayment in United States’ security at a time when threats are surging. Whether considering Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, China’s aggression in the Pacific, Iranian-driven violence in the Middle East, North Korea’s continued nuclear weapons build out, or the threats posed by violent non-state actors, U.S. interests around the globe are under threat like never before. Ignoring these challenges is not a viable option. Nor is it realistic to think the U.S. can successfully address these threats unilaterally. Success demands partnering with allies and partners, which is exactly what the support for Ukraine and Israel represents.
Throughout the 20th century, the United States stood as a proud leader on the side of justice and freedom. American forces were the deciding factor in both World Wars and the United States was the lynchpin of the western alliance during the Cold War. The alternatives facing the world were stark had not the U.S. willingly accepted this leadership mantle. Whether discussing Nazi Germany’s oppression or the Soviet Union’s totalitarian objectives, freedom was literally on the line throughout the last century.
In the subsequent decades since the fall of the Berlin Wall, the U.S. willingly choose to downsize its military. Force structure and personnel in all the service branches were dramatically cut. Looking at the Air Force, it now has less than half the combat aircraft it possessed in 1991. In fact, the Air Force today is the oldest, smallest, and least ready in its history—and programmed to get even smaller due to Congressional budget caps. This reduction in capacity is matched with a relative decline in capability. Most U.S. Air Force fighters in service now predate the invention of the worldwide web. The B-52—the backbone of the free world’s bomber force just celebrated the 72nd anniversary of its first flight. While not as geriatric, similar challenges can be found in nearly every service.
Multiple conflicts in the 1990s, combined with the fights in Afghanistan and Iraq, ground down U.S. forces hard. What modernization did occur was not focused on China, Russia, a nuclear North Korea, or a soon to be nuclear Iran—the very kind of challenges that now define our security environment. Specific risk was purposefully taken in areas needed to deter these threats—the world’s most capable combat aircraft, the F-22 and the B-2, were cut to a fraction of their stated military requirement. We desperately need the next generation of capabilities embodied in these weapon systems today, and at sufficient capacities needed to meet the demands of our defense strategy.
While the U.S. was cutting its military strength for major conflict and focused on small-scale operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, China, Russia, Iran and North Korea doubled down on their security modernization. This included innovating 21st century capabilities previously the sole domain of the United States—things like precision weapons, stealth, advanced space architectures, and nuclear weapon investments. This has yielded a highly complex, lethal multipolar threat environment with adversary nations partnering to present the U.S. and its allies with highly integrated, coordinated challenges. Make no mistake Russia’s push in Ukraine, Iranian actions via proxies in the Middle East, continued Chinese aggression and North Korean ballistic missile tests are aligned to strain U.S. and allied capabilities, capacity and resolve.
Given the dramatic reduction in U.S. military capacity and modernization, it is no longer reasonable to assume the American forces can successfully handle these challenges alone, especially when they are executed in an integrated fashion. The only way the U.S. will succeed is by partnering with allies. However, for that to work, allied nations and their populaces need to have confidence that the U.S. is dependable and will come through when the chips are down. Congress’s incessant inaction in approving vital aid to Ukraine, Israel and the broader defense supplemental erode this confidence. Politics must not supersede policy wisdom and basic pragmatic common sense given what is at stake.
Ukrainians and Israeli forces are engaged in fights directly tied to core U.S. interests. We must do all we can to see that they prevail in these wars. Falling short of that mark will embolden our adversaries to directly challenge us, and dramatically increase the odds that America’s sons and daughters will have to spill their blood as a result. There comes a point where evil must be checked.
Ironically, most of the aid funding in question will be spent in the U.S. It will help the U.S. defense industry scale to meet the new challenges facing us. This reset is vital given that over three decades of defense under investment and shortsighted strategic security decisions have yielded a defense industrial base unable to meet the security demands facing us. We need to rebuild that capacity as a national priority and do it fast. Otherwise, we risk the very real possibility that we will lose our next major regional conflict.
The United States has faced these decision windows before and done the right thing—leaders of past eras stood on the side of right. Today’s leaders must do the same. In 1940, when Europe was in the opening phases of World War II, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill wrote to President Franklin Roosevelt asking for assistance that would eventually come in the form of Lend Lease. He explained: “Mr. President, the voice and the force of the United States may count for nothing if they are withheld too long.” We face a similar set of circumstances today. It is time to act. Congress must pass the legislation supporting Ukraine and Israel.
