WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — The US Army is going to be smaller and different from what it has been in the past, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Martin Dempsey said, according to a Department of Defense News report.
Dempsey was speaking on Friday at a ceremony held at Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall, Virginia, where General Mark Milley succeeded General Raymond Odierno as US Army Chief of Staff.
However, Dempsey said that the US Army will continue to do what the United States asks it to do, and to do that, its troops must continue to be well-trained, well-led and well-equipped, according to the News report.
"You are an inspired choice to lead our Army into the future and you are going to be terrific," Dempsey told Milley.
The US Army has been forced to reduce its strength by 80,000 troops and an additional 40,000 may have to be cut in the coming year if Congress fails to resolve the ongoing budget deadlock that has activated automatic sequestration cuts.
Dempsey’s designated successor as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs, Marine Corps Commandant General Joseph Dunford Jr. told the Senate Armed Services Committee last month that if implemented, the cuts would prove disastrous for the US Army.
If the US military goes into sequestration, Dempsey said then, it will be unable to support the current strategy to protect the United States as the readiness and modernization of the joint force will suffer catastrophic consequences.
Dunford will take over as Joint Chiefs Chairman from Dempsey on October 1, 2015.
