Pentagon Boosts Drone Spending in Record Budget — Bloomberg
The U.S. Department of Defense plans to allocate $75 billion to the development of drones and counter-drone capabilities. This decision stems from the effectiveness of low-cost UAVs in the Middle East, which has prompted the U.S. to revise its defense strategy.
This was reported with reference to Bloomberg.
According to the department, a significant portion of these funds will go toward a sharp increase in funding for the Defense Autonomous Working Group (DAWG), which collaborates with special forces and tests new systems.
Specifically, $54.6 billion is allocated for this unit, compared to just $225.9 million this year. This could be one of the largest annual jumps in funding among defense programs.
The Pentagon notes that most of the funds will be directed not toward developing new technologies, but toward the procurement, evaluation, and modernization of existing unmanned systems.
The DAWG division works alongside special operations forces, which test drones in real-world conditions and provide feedback to manufacturers for improvement.
The sharp increase in funding comes amid conflicts that have demonstrated the effectiveness of low-cost strike drones. In particular, disposable drones are being actively used in the war in the Middle East.
The U.S. has also begun using similar systems, deploying units equipped with low-cost strike drones based on Iranian technology.
In addition, the Pentagon is investing in the development of drone swarms using artificial intelligence. Leading technology companies are involved in such projects.
At the same time, the final decision on funding must be made by Congress, as part of the funds is allocated within a separate budget package.
The U.S. is preparinga plan for a military operation in Cuba.
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