America News Agency

According to the memo, which includes a list of 17 categories that the Trump administration seeks to exempt from the cuts, Hegseth ordered the proposed reductions to be prepared by February 24.

These include: operations along the US southern border, modernization of nuclear weapons and missile defense, and acquisition of single-use attack drones and other munitions. If fully adopted, the proposed cuts will amount to tens of billions of dollars over the next five years.

According to The Washington Post, the memo calls for maintaining funding for "support agencies" for several major regional commands, including the Indo-Pacific Command, the Northern Command, and the Space Command.

The list does not include the European Command, which plays a key role in executing US strategy during the war in Ukraine, the Central Command overseeing operations in the Middle East, or the Africa Command, which manages several thousand US troops stationed on the continent.

In a memo written on Tuesday, Hegseth stated: "President Trump’s directive to the Department of Defense is clear: achieve peace through strength. The time for preparation is over - we must act urgently to revive the warrior spirit, rebuild our military, and restore deterrence. Our budget will allocate resources to the necessary combat power, eliminate unnecessary defense spending, reject excessive bureaucracy, and promote practical reforms, including improved oversight."