By Kasim Ileri
WASHINGTON
The U.S. needs to spend billions of dollars to fix systematic flaws within the American nuclear enterprise, the US defense chief said Friday.
Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel said that reviews he ordered earlier this year found evidence of systemic problems in the country's nuclear force that if not addressed could undermine the safety, security, and effectiveness of elements of the U.S. nuclear force in the future.
"These problems include manning; infrastructure; and skill deficiencies; a culture of micro management; and over-inspection and inadequate communication, follow-up, and accountability," Hagel said.
The Defense has implemented more than 100 recommendations from internal and external reviews In the past several months, including changes in organization, policies, and culture as well as an increase in resources, allocated to the nuclear mission.
During the next five years the U.S. will increase the nuclear enterprise by 10 percent which is currently $15 billion to $16 billion annually, the defense chief said.
"I've directed our analysts in DOD's office of Cost Assessment and Program Evaluation to track both the status of the actions we're taking, the progress we're making, and the impact on the health of our nuclear force," he said. The analysts will report their findings every month to Hagel's deputy and to the other members of the review group, who will all report to Hagel approximately every 90 days, he added.
Hagel said that earlier this year the Air Force established a force improvement program for the Global Strike Command and reallocated more than $160 million in fiscal year 2014 and $150 million in fiscal year 2015 to address the most urgent shortfalls in equipment, facilities and manning.
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