White Paper: Strength Cuts Would Impair Readiness

Plans to cut the active Army’s end strength to as low as 380,000 by 2019 would render the service unable to meet security and mission commitments, according to a white paper published this month by the Brookings Institution. Current Army strength now ranges between 480,000 and 490,000 soldiers. The author, Army Col. John Evans, said strains caused by nearly14 straight years of combat operations and tight budgets brought on by sequestration cuts beginning in 2011 already have taken their toll. While not speaking as an Army spokesman or in any official capacity, Evans nonetheless championed Chief of Staff Gen. Ray Odierno’s contention that going below 490,000 could undermine the Army’s ability to meet challenges posed by Russian aggression in Eastern Europe and the Rise of the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria.